This profit is a first for Cedar Fair

Article Excerpt

CEDAR FAIR L.P. $30 (New York symbol FUN; WSSF Rating: Average) usually loses money in the last three months of the year, because only one of its seven amusement parks stays open all year. However, the company is drawing more people to its parks in the fall with special Halloween events. Its new Castaway Bay indoor waterpark, near its flagship Cedar Point park in Ohio, is also open year-round. Its four other waterparks close for the winter. Consequently, Cedar Fair earned $0.04 a unit in the fourth quarter of 2005, compared with a loss of $0.14 a unit a year earlier. Revenue grew 14.4%, to $78.0 million from $68.2 million. Attendance rose 13%, and average in-park spending per guest grew 5%. Cedar Fair plans to spend $1.08 a unit on capital improvements in 2006, down from $1.45 in 2005. It’s also cutting attendance prices at Cedar Point to encourage more repeat visits. These moves should give it more cash for distributions. The…