Overview
- Comcast disclosed on Oct. 22 that Theme Parks revenue fell about 4.4% to $2.597 billion while Adjusted EBITDA dropped 17.1% to $780 million, with operating expenses up roughly 2.3%.
- Management blamed the quarter’s weakness mainly on lower admissions driven by increased promotional activity plus competitors that moved faster to adjust marketing, and it described these headwinds as temporary.
- Executives singled out operational problems at Epic Universe, saying ride capacity, attraction reliability and throughput have been below expectations and that technical fixes and front-line training are under way to raise hourly guest throughput.
- As an immediate commercial response Universal has added senior hires for marketing and business strategy, is testing new ticket packages including teased three-park passes, and plans increased media spend and more promotions to stimulate visits.
- The company expects softness to persist into early 2027 with a recovery returning to growth in the second half of 2027, a development that could draw greater scrutiny once Comcast separates its connectivity and media businesses around mid-2027 and when Disney’s overlapping quarter is reported in November.