United Parks & Resorts (NYSE:PRKS) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.33 EPS

United Parks & Resorts (NYSE:PRKS) posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The company reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by ($0.33), Zacks reports. United Parks & Resorts had a net margin of 9.09% and a negative return on equity of 35.46%. United Parks & Resorts’s quarterly revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.45 earnings per share.

Here are the key takeaways from United Parks & Resorts’ conference call:

• Second-quarter performance weakened: Revenue fell 1.4% to $483.3 million, attendance declined 2.9%, and adjusted EBITDA decreased $10.8 million to $195.5 million, pressured by the Easter calendar shift, lower international visitation, weather, and higher operating expenses.
• Guest spending remained a bright spot. Total revenue per capita increased 1.5%, led by a 5.1% rise in in-park per-capita spending from pricing, greater product penetration, technology upgrades, and improved food, retail, photo, and catering offerings.
• July revenue was preliminarily down approximately 2% as wildfires, poor air quality, excessive heat, and extended rain reduced attendance, although admissions and in-park spending per capita increased.
• Management cited several potential catalysts, including double-digit growth in advanced bookings for Discovery Cove and group business, ahead-of-last-year Howl-O-Scream bookings, new Sony Pictures intellectual property, and a new strategy aimed at meaningfully growing the 2027 pass base.
• The company repurchased 3.3 million shares for approximately $125 million in the quarter, remains on pace for $50 million of gross cost savings in 2026, and said credible third parties are assigning real-estate valuations that compare favorably with the company’s public-market enterprise value.

United Parks & Resorts Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PRKS traded down $0.39 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $45.12. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 261,687 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,023,957. United Parks & Resorts has a fifty-two week low of $28.77 and a fifty-two week high of $56.95. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $44.95 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $38.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.09, a PEG ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 1.14.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other United Parks & Resorts news, insider Christopher L. Finazzo sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.76, for a total value of $294,080.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 130,285 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,789,276.60. The trade was a 5.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of United Parks & Resorts

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of PRKS. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in United Parks & Resorts by 11.7% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 12,220 shares of the company’s stock worth $556,000 after acquiring an additional 1,282 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in United Parks & Resorts by 58.9% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 678,813 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,859,000 after purchasing an additional 251,522 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in shares of United Parks & Resorts by 3.1% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 102,317 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,651,000 after purchasing an additional 3,047 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of United Parks & Resorts during the second quarter valued at about $208,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of United Parks & Resorts by 5.8% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 77,357 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,647,000 after purchasing an additional 4,209 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on PRKS. Zacks Research upgraded United Parks & Resorts from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Citizens Jmp assumed coverage on United Parks & Resorts in a research report on Monday, June 29th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $56.00 price objective on shares of United Parks & Resorts in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Mizuho upgraded United Parks & Resorts from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $27.00 to $47.00 in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of United Parks & Resorts from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $47.00.

United Parks & Resorts Company Profile

United Parks & Resorts, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the ownership and operation of theme parks. Its portfolio includes SeaWorld, Busch Gardens, Aquatica, Discovery Cove, Sesame Place, and Sea Rescue. The company was founded in 1959 and is headquartered in Orlando, FL.