Attendance at Six Flags parks dropped 27 percent in the first quarter or 2020, compared with the same period in 2019 as its parks closed or did not open for the season this year due to the pandemic. That's a decline of 584,000 visitors, to a total of 1.6 million guests in the first three months of the year. Revenue was down $26 million, or 20 percent, to $103 million.
The good news, such as it is, was that guest spending was up while the parks were open - up $8.12, or 17 percent, to $56.60 per guest. Overall, Six Flags reported a net loss of $85 million for the quarter.
"I am proud of our team, who has responded with a passion for each other, our business, our guests, and our communities," Six Flags President and CEO Mike Spanos said.
"We remain focused on enhancing the strength of our North American business and are positioning ourselves to emerge stronger on the other side of the pandemic. We have taken steps to prepare for the extreme-downside scenario of a prolonged minimal revenue business, including actions to maximize our liquidity and reduce cash outflows. Our strong operating results in the quarter prior to the pandemic-driven suspension of operations demonstrate the health of our brand and the success of our targeted single-day pricing strategy and productivity initiatives. We stand ready to execute our plans to safely and profitably reopen our parks in accordance with CDC and local health guidelines."
Six Flags has secured a private offering of $725 million in secured notes to help carry the company through the closure of its parks and has adopted a "poison pill" shareholders' rights provision to discourage any hostile takeover attempt. Six Flags stock is trading now at about $20 a share, up significantly from the sub-$10 range where the stock was trading when theme parks began closing around the country.
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