Skift Take
The news has been consistently positive for SeaWorld lately after a long stretch of disappointing results. With new leadership and a strategy that has been working, 2019 is shaping up well.
SeaWorld's long climb out of the Blackfish hole may finally be over.
The theme park operator reported that full-year attendance climbed to the highest number since 2013, the year the critical documentary was released. Revenue also increased in 2018 for the first time since 2013.
Those numbers didn't just inch up; both attendance and revenue jumped 8.6 percent year-over-year.
SeaWorld Entertainment said 22.6 million people visited its properties, which include 12 theme and water parks around the United States. Revenue jumped to $1.37 billion.
The company also made a profit of $44.8 million last year, unlike the net losses it posted in 2017 and 2016.
For the fourth quarter, attendance increased 8 percent to 4.6 million visitors, while revenue was up 5.5 percent to $280 million. The company reported a loss of $11.1 million for the quarter, though that was less than the net loss in 2017.
Shares rose nearly 8 percent to close at $27.29 Thursday.
Admission fell again, by 5.6 percent, to $35.46 per person in the qu
