SeaWorld shares sink after ‘Blackfish’ backlash
Shares in SeaWorld have taken a dive following lower-than-expected second quarter earnings, knocking a third off its value in Wednesday trading.
The company has dramatically revised down its full-year forecast and for the first time publically cited the ‘Blackfish’ controversy as a factor.
"The company believes attendance in the quarter was impacted by demand pressures related to recent media attention surrounding proposed legislation in the state of California," SeaWorld said.
Two California lawmakers have requested a federal study relating to the captivity of large marine animals.
The company has suffered a barrage of criticism since the 2013 documentary ‘Blackfish’ which accused SeaWorld of mistreating captive orcas.
Executives will seek cost-efficiencies across the company to get finances back on track.
"In order to drive growth, we are undertaking a number of initiatives, including a detailed review of our company-wide cost structure with the goal of driving significant cash cost savings in 2014 and 2015," said CEO Jim Atchison.
Atchison said the company will "ramp up communication efforts" to combat negative publicity.
During the earnings call it reported a profit of $37.3 million which was significantly lower than analysts’ forecasts and lower spending per guest "caused a shortfall to our expectations," said CFO James Heaney.
SeaWorld said it forecasts a profit decline of 6-7% for the full year.
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