Six Flags Entertainment Increases Sales but Misses Estimates on Earnings

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

Six Flags Entertainment (NYS: SIX) reported earnings on Feb. 15. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
 For the quarter ended Dec. 31 (Q4), Six Flags Entertainment beat expectations on revenues and missed expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue grew and GAAP loss per share grew.

Margins improved across the board.

Revenue details
 Six Flags Entertainment tallied revenue of $137.6 million. The four analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ hoped for a top line of $126.3 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 13% higher than the prior-year quarter's $121.8 million.

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Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
 EPS came in at -$1.85. The three earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ predicted -$0.86 per share. GAAP EPS were -$1.85 for Q4 compared to -$1.70 per share for the prior-year quarter.

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Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
 For the quarter, gross margin was 42.2%, 470 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was -23.6%, 1,050 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -74.2%, 370 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
 Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $62.9 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is -$1.36.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $1.05 billion. The average EPS estimate is $0.58.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a two-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 29 members out of 38 rating the stock outperform, and nine members rating it underperform. Among 11 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), seven give Six Flags Entertainment a green thumbs-up, and four give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Six Flags Entertainment is outperform, with an average price target of $43.17.

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At the time thisarticle was published Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor ofMotley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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