EXHIBIT 99.1
[SIX FLAGS LOGO]
SIX FLAGS REPORTS THIRD QUARTER RESULTS
o Quarterly Revenue Down 2% Due to Soft July Attendance,
Partially Offset by Total Revenue Per Capita Growth
o Nine Month Revenue Up 2% on Stable Attendance and Total
Revenue Per Capita Growth, Despite Fewer Park Operating Days
New York, NY - November 9, 2007 - Six Flags, Inc. (NYSE: SIX) today announced
operating results for its third quarter and nine months ended September 30,
2007. (1)
Total revenue for the quarter decreased 2% to $465.2 million from $474.2 million
in the prior-year quarter. Attendance decreased 0.3 million, or 3%, to 12.0
million from 12.3 million in the prior year. The attendance decrease stems from
a difficult July during which attendance dropped 9% compared to the prior year
reflecting unfavorable weather primarily at our Texas and Georgia parks, one
less Saturday in the operating calendar, and extensive national media coverage
of a ride-related accident in late June at the Company's park in Louisville,
Kentucky. Prior to these events, attendance for June had increased 10% over the
prior year. Following these events, August stabilized at 1% and September
increased 8% over the prior year attendance.
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(1) Reported results from continuing operations for all periods presented
exclude park operations in Buffalo, New York; Columbus, Ohio; Concord,
California; Denver, Colorado; Houston, Texas; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma;
Sacramento, California; and Seattle, Washington. These parks have been
classified as discontinued operations. As of April 6, 2007, the sales of all of
the above-named parks were completed.
Total revenue per capita for the quarter increased by $0.39 (1%) to $38.90,
reflecting increased sponsorship revenue. Per capita guest spending increased
$0.04 during the quarter to $37.13 as guests spent 3% more in-park, primarily on
food and beverages, parking, and games, while per capita spending on admissions
was down slightly, reflecting an increased mix of season pass and promotional
offer attendance.
The Company's income from continuing operations for the quarter was $89.7
million, compared to income of $127.9 million in the third quarter of 2006,
reflecting reduced revenue, $15.3 million of increased costs and expenses
primarily from increased advertising ($10.0 million) and park-wide labor ($5.3
million), the cost of settling a class-action labor lawsuit in California
(included with other expense in the statement of operations), and an increased
loss on the disposal of fixed assets.
"I'm proud of the advances we continue to make at Six Flags despite a temporary
setback within the third quarter due to inclement July weather and extensive
negative publicity stemming from the accident at our Kentucky park," said Mark
Shapiro, Six Flags President and CEO. "With revenue per guest and consumer
satisfaction scores at all-time highs and a powerful park-wide capital expansion
plan on deck, we are well positioned to deliver on the promise of this company's
turnaround in 2008."
Net income applicable to common stock in the third quarter 2007 was $84.2
million, or $0.61 per share - diluted, compared to net income applicable to
common stock of $159.3 million, or $1.08 per common share - diluted in the
prior-year period, which included $36.8 million (or $0.23 per common share -
diluted) of gain from discontinued operations.
Adjusted EBITDA(2) for the quarter was $198.6 million, compared to $216.7
million in the third quarter of 2006, reflecting decreased revenue and increased
costs and expenses and a $5.2 million reduction in third-party share of Adjusted
EBITDA due to the Company's acquisition in July of the minority interest in Six
Flags Discovery Kingdom.
Nine Month Results
For the nine months ended September 30, 2007, total revenue increased $19.3
million, or 2%, to $860.6 million from $841.3 million in the prior-year period.
Total revenue per capita for the nine months compared to the prior-year period
increased $0.94 (2%) to $39.02 reflecting increased sponsorship revenue and
per capita guest spending. Increased per capita guest spending for the nine
months of $0.44 over the prior-year period, or 1%, to $36.91 was driven by
increased food and beverages, parking, rentals and games revenue. Attendance for
the nine months ended September 30, 2007 was 22.1 million, flat with the
prior-year period, despite 53 (2%) fewer park operating days.
Total costs and expenses, including cost of sales, depreciation, amortization,
stock-based compensation and loss on fixed assets, increased $14.7 million to
$752.5 million for the first nine months of 2007 compared to the prior-year
period. The key drivers of the change were increased advertising expense ($28.0
million) and park-wide labor ($10.6 million), partially offset by prior-year
costs related to the change in management ($13.7 million), a reduced loss on
fixed assets ($8.8 million) and lower stock-based compensation ($6.8 million).
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(2) See the following tables and Note 2 to those tables for a discussion of
EBITDA (Modified), Adjusted EBITDA, and the reconciliation to these amounts from
net income (loss).
Net loss applicable to common stock for the first nine months of 2007 was $142.7
million, or $1.51 per share, compared to a net loss applicable to common stock
of $132.4 million, or $1.41 per common share in the prior-year period. The
increased net loss of $10.3 million reflects a higher loss from continuing
operations ($6.8 million) driven by higher costs and expenses and an increased
loss from discontinued operations ($4.6 million), partially offset by the impact
of a prior-year change in accounting principles ($1.0 million).
Adjusted EBITDA for the first nine months of 2007 improved by $0.6 million over
the prior-year period to $187.7 million.
Cash and Liquidity
As of September 30, 2007, the Company had no balance outstanding on its $275
million revolving credit facility (excluding letters of credit in the amount of
$33.3 million) and had $105.4 million in unrestricted cash.
Conference Call
The Company will host a teleconference for analysts and investors today at
8:30 AM Eastern. Participants in the call will include President and Chief
Executive Officer, Mark Shapiro, and Executive Vice President and Chief
Financial Officer, Jeffrey R. Speed.
The teleconference will be broadcast live to all interested persons as a
listen-only Web cast on http://investors.sixflags.com/. The Web cast will be
archived for one year.
About Six Flags
Six Flags, Inc. is the world's largest regional theme park company. Founded in
1961, Six Flags is a publicly-traded corporation (NYSE: SIX) headquartered in
New York City.
Forward Looking Statements:
The information contained in this news release, other than historical
information, consists of forward-looking statements within the meaning of
Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange
Act. These statements may involve risks and uncertainties that could cause
actual results to differ materially from those described in such statements.
These risks and uncertainties include, among others, Six Flags' success in
implementing its new business strategy. Although Six Flags believes that the
expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can
give no assurance that such expectations will prove to have been correct.
Important factors, including factors impacting attendance, such as local
conditions, events, disturbances and terrorist activities, risk of accidents
occurring at Six Flags' parks, adverse weather conditions, general economic
conditions (including consumer spending patterns), competition, pending,
threatened or future legal proceedings and other factors could cause actual
results to differ materially from Six Flags' expectations. Reference is made to
a more complete discussion of forward-looking statements and applicable risks
contained under the captions "Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking
Statements" and "Risk Factors" in Six Flags' Annual Report on Form 10-K for the
year ended December 31, 2006, which is available free of charge on Six Flags'
website http://www.sixflags.com.
# # #
Media Contact: Sandra Daniels - (212) 652-9360
Investor Relations: William Schmitt - (203) 682-8200
Six Flags, Inc.
Three and Nine Months Ended September 30, 2007 and 2006
(In Thousands, Except Per Share Amounts)
Statement of Operations (1) Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended
September 30, September 30,
---------------------- ----------------------
2007 2006 2007 2006
--------- --------- --------- ---------
Revenue $ 465,185 $ 474,239 $ 860,646 $ 841,322
Costs and expenses (excluding
depreciation, amortization,
stock-based compensation
and loss on fixed assets) 241,125 225,841 631,554 605,799
Depreciation 34,995 33,754 102,369 98,121
Amortization 399 220 975 659
Stock-based compensation 1,822 2,277 6,229 13,052
Loss on fixed assets 6,179 820 11,344 20,104
--------- --------- --------- ---------
Income from operations 180,665 211,327 108,175 103,587
--------- --------- --------- ---------
Interest expense (net) 47,817 50,305 150,493 148,682
Minority interest in earnings 26,574 30,917 41,105 45,402
Equity in operations of partnerships 50 144 568 462
Net loss on debt extinguishment 1,509 -- 11,865 --
Other expense 13,116 232 13,306 11,536
--------- --------- --------- ---------
Income (loss) from continuing operations
before income taxes 91,599 129,729 (109,162) (102,495)
Income tax expense (1,921) (1,783) (4,116) (3,985)
--------- --------- --------- ---------
Income (loss) from continuing operations
before discontinued operations and
cumulative effect of a change in
accounting principle 89,678 127,946 (113,278) (106,480)
Discontinued operations -- 36,798 (12,993) (8,372)
--------- --------- --------- ---------
Income (loss) before cumulative effect of a
change in accounting principle 89,678 164,744 (126,271) (114,852)
Cumulative effect of a change
in accounting principle -- -- -- (1,038)
--------- --------- --------- ---------
Net income (loss) $ 89,678 $ 164,744 $(126,271) $(115,890)
========= ========= ========= =========
Net income (loss) applicable to
common stock $ 84,186 $ 159,252 $(142,748) $(132,367)
========= ========= ========= =========
Per share - basic:
Income (loss) from continuing operations $ 0.89 $ 1.30 $ (1.37) $ (1.31)
Discontinued operations $ -- $ 0.39 $ (0.14) $ (0.09)
Cumulative effect of a change in
accounting principle $ -- $ -- $ -- $ (0.01)
--------- --------- --------- ---------
Net income (loss) $ 0.89 $ 1.69 $ (1.51) $ (1.41)
========= ========= ========= =========
Per share - diluted:
Income (loss) from continuing operations $ 0.61 $ 0.85 $ (1.37) $ (1.31)
Discontinued operations $ -- $ 0.23 $ (0.14) $ (0.09)
Cumulative effect of a change in
accounting principle $ -- $ -- $ -- $ (0.01)
--------- --------- --------- ---------
Net income (loss) $ 0.61 $ 1.08 $ (1.51) $ (1.41)
========= ========= ========= =========
Balance Sheet Data
(In Thousands)
Balance Sheet Data September 30, 2007 December 31, 2006
- --------------------------------- ------------------ -----------------
Cash and cash equivalents
(excluding restricted cash) $ 105,411 $ 24,295
Total assets 3,109,016 3,187,616
Current portion of long-term debt 9,858 114,059
Long-term debt (excluding current
portion) 2,241,315 2,126,888
Mandatory redeemable preferred
stock 285,342 284,497
Total stockholders' equity 250,646 376,140
Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended
September 30, September 30,
--------------------- ---------------------
2007 2006 2007 2006
--------- --------- --------- ---------
Other Data:
EBITDA (Modified) (2) $ 224,060 $ 248,398 $ 229,092 $ 235,523
Adjusted EBITDA (2) $ 198,617 $ 216,699 $ 187,682 $ 187,119
Weighted average shares
outstanding - basic 94,690 94,352 94,670 94,194
Weighted average shares
outstanding - diluted 152,573 155,229 94,670 94,194
Net cash provided by
operating activities $ 92,170 $ 146,350 $ 18,221 $ 84,978
The following table sets forth a reconciliation of net income (loss) to EBITDA
(Modified) and Adjusted EBITDA for the periods shown (in thousands):
Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended
September 30, September 30,
--------------------- ---------------------
2007 2006 2007 2006
--------- --------- --------- ---------
Net income (loss) $ 89,678 $ 164,744 $(126,271) $(115,890)
Cumulative effect of a change in
accounting principle -- -- -- 1,038
Discontinued operations -- (36,798) 12,993 8,372
Income tax expense 1,921 1,783 4,116 3,985
Other expense 13,116 232 13,306 11,536
Net loss on debt extinguishment 1,509 -- 11,865 --
Equity in operations of partnerships 50 144 568 462
Minority interest in earnings 26,574 30,917 41,105 45,402
Interest expense (net) 47,817 50,305 150,493 148,682
Loss on fixed assets 6,179 820 11,344 20,104
Amortization 399 220 975 659
Depreciation 34,995 33,754 102,369 98,121
Stock-based compensation 1,822 2,277 6,229 13,052
--------- --------- --------- ---------
EBITDA (Modified) 224,060 248,398 229,092 235,523
Third party interest in EBITDA
of certain operations (3) (25,443) (31,699) (41,410) (48,404)
--------- --------- --------- ---------
Adjusted EBITDA $ 198,617 $ 216,699 $ 187,682 $ 187,119
========= ========= ========= =========
NOTES
(1) Revenues and expenses of international operations are converted into U.S.
dollars on a current basis as provided by U.S. generally accepted
accounting principles ("GAAP").
(2) EBITDA (Modified), a non-GAAP measure, is defined as net income (loss)
before discontinued operations, income tax expense (benefit), other
expense, early repurchase of debt (formerly an extraordinary loss), equity
in operations of partnerships, minority interest in earnings (losses),
interest expense (net), amortization, depreciation, stock- based
compensation and gain (loss) on disposal of assets. Adjusted EBITDA, also
a non- GAAP measure, is defined as EBITDA (Modified) minus interests of
third parties in EBITDA of the four parks that are less than wholly-owned,
plus our interest in the EBITDA (Modified) of one hotel and dick clark
productions inc., which are less than wholly owned. The Company believes
that EBITDA (Modified) and Adjusted EBITDA (collectively, "EBITDA Based
Measures") provide useful information to investors regarding the Company's
operating performance and its capacity to incur and service debt and fund
capital expenditures. The Company believes that the EBITDA-Based Measures
are used by many investors, equity analysts and rating agencies as a
measure of performance. In addition, Adjusted EBITDA is approximately
equal to "Consolidated Cash Flow" as defined in the indentures relating to
the Company's senior notes. Neither of the EBITDA-Based Measures is
defined by GAAP and neither should be considered in isolation or as an
alternative to net income (loss), income (loss) from continuing
operations, net cash provided by (used in) operating, investing and
financing activities or other financial data prepared in accordance with
GAAP or as an indicator of the Company's operating performance. EBITDA
(Modified) and Adjusted EBITDA as defined in this release may differ from
similarly titled measures presented by other companies.
(3) Represents interest of third parties in EBITDA of Six Flags Over Georgia,
Six Flags Over Texas, Six Flags White Water Atlanta, and Six Flags
Discovery Kingdom (formerly Six Flags Marine World), plus our interest in
the EBITDA (Modified) of one hotel and dick clark productions inc., which
are less than wholly owned.