United Parks & Resorts reported lower attendance, revenue and profit in the third quarter and first nine months of 2026, while spending per guest increased. The company attributed quarterly attendance pressure to weather, calendar effects and international headwinds, as well as a planned cut in promotional admissions.
Management pointed to stronger pass sales and forward bookings as signs of improving demand, and said it sees a path to significantly higher attendance, revenue, adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow in 2027 and beyond.
Key details
- Third-quarter attendance fell 4.7% year over year, to 6.5 million guests, a decline of about 300,000. Revenue decreased 1.1% to $506.5 million.
- Quarterly profit measures also declined: net income was $80.0 million, down 10.5%, while adjusted EBITDA fell 5.1% to $205.1 million.
- Spending per guest rose despite fewer visitors. Total revenue per capita increased 3.8% to $78.29. Admission spending per guest rose 3.4% to $40.90, and in-park spending increased 4.4% to a record $37.39.
- CEO Marc Swanson said weather, calendar effects and international headwinds reduced attendance by about 325,000 visits. He said attendance would have increased without those effects. Separately, a planned reduction in promotional admission products accounted for more than 100,000 fewer visits.
- For the first nine months, attendance was 15.7 million, down 4.1%, and revenue was $1.268 billion, down 1.6%. Net income fell 28.8% to $109.2 million, and adjusted EBITDA declined 6.4% to $458.6 million.
- Nine-month revenue per capita increased 2.6% to $80.54. Admission spending per guest rose 0.5% to $41.68, while in-park spending climbed 4.8% to a record $38.86.
- Pass sales showed growth: third-quarter total pass sales were up nearly 8%. As of Oct. 31, the paid pass base was positive, and the company’s pass products for 2027 were up more than 15%.
- The company said projected October revenue was higher year over year despite difficult weather. Its separately ticketed Howl-O-Scream events also recorded meaningful year-over-year growth on days not affected by weather.
- Forward-booking revenue for 2027 at Discovery Cove and in the group business was running at double-digit percentage increases compared with the same point a year earlier.
- United Parks said it helped 237 animals in the wild during the quarter, bringing the total helped over its history to more than 43,000.
What the results indicate
The quarter’s pattern was fewer visitors but higher spending per visitor; the increase in per-capita revenue did not fully offset lower attendance, leaving total revenue and adjusted EBITDA below year-earlier levels. Management’s comments on pass sales, October revenue and forward bookings point to stronger indicators for future demand, but its longer-term growth outlook was not accompanied by specific targets in the reported figures.