Q1 Earnings Report, Universal

[Mad Dog]

Universal theme parks had a 152%increase in revenue during the first quarter 2022. Adjusted earnings of $451 million. Revenue increased by $941 million to $1.6 Billion.
Universal 'Orlando' generated the the highest Adjusted EBITDA in it's history. (I guess Mardi Gras was a wild success this year).
CEO Jeff Shell. "Bookings going forward, looking at the summer, are at historic levels"...
Universal added the caveat that International visitation is still only half of historic levels, so that number will probably have huge increases going forward.

 

[Nico]

Wow. EU can’t come soon enough. I hope they see a quick ROI so we get high level investment in the north campus post 2025.

 

[SailwiththeTide]

Universal theme parks had a 152%increase in revenue during the first quarter 2022. Adjusted earnings of $451 million. Revenue increased by $941 million to $1.6 Billion.
Universal 'Orlando' generated the the highest Adjusted EBITDA in it's history. (I guess Mardi Gras was a wild success this year).
CEO Jeff Shell. "Bookings going forward, looking at the summer, are at historic levels"...
Universal added the caveat that International visitation is still only half of historic levels, so that number will probably have huge increases going forward.

ALL this with no stupid reservation system and micromanagement.

 

[Mad Dog]

ALL this with no stupid reservation system and micromanagement.

and...that's surely a part of the reason for the success....Universal, the relaxing leisurely alternative to ludicrous over planning stress.

 

[Rock'nRoller]

Universal theme parks had a 152%increase in revenue during the first quarter 2022. Adjusted earnings of $451 million. Revenue increased by $941 million to $1.6 Billion.
Universal 'Orlando' generated the the highest Adjusted EBITDA in it's history. (I guess Mardi Gras was a wild success this year).
CEO Jeff Shell. "Bookings going forward, looking at the summer, are at historic levels"...
Universal added the caveat that International visitation is still only half of historic levels, so that number will probably have huge increases going forward.

 

[OrlandoGuy]

Universal 'Orlando' generated the the highest Adjusted EBITDA in it's history. (I guess Mardi Gras was a wild success this year).

This is the craziest part to me. It’s one thing to show high net revenue or YOY increases given all the cut expenses a lot of companies are still benefitting from, but record levels of pure earnings is insane. Hate to see the crowds as a visitor, but love to see the money as a fan.

 

[Nick]

This is the craziest part to me. It’s one thing to show high net revenue or YOY increases given all the cut expenses a lot of companies are still benefitting from, but record levels of pure earnings is insane. Hate to see the crowds as a visitor, but love to see the money as a fan.

Basically making Mardi Gras a Food & Wine Festival has helped greatly, but also remember that both Shrek and Mummy were down the entire quarter, too. I'm sure the Tribute store actually sold a lot more merch this year too considering there was no parade last year and much lower attendance.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

I really hope IOA and some parts of USF, get a similar project like Disneyland's prior to SWGE (project stardust). There are some parts of IOA that are becoming way too congested now.

 

[Mad Dog]

Some of us here predicted back in 2020 that 2022 would be a strong bounce back year and unfortunately for the tranquility of my vacations, we were right .... and.....just wait until the Brazilians come and then the UK'ers in August Sept. ...Myself, I've cancelled my 2022 Orlando vacations since it's just going to be too crowded. I'm predicting though that 2023 will be a bit softer, between the covid bounce back should be gone by then and the economy probably will be softer, interest rate rises etc.

 

[GAcoaster]

It was interesting to see they say they were still at reduced capacity. Also interesting to get an official confirmation about Nintendo (in case anyone didn't know).

It also looks like the gas prices/inflation is having a minimal impact on summer bookings now:


Suddenly lots of British accents and South American guests showing up again, so foreign travel is starting to rebound too.

 

[agentj]

Some of us here predicted back in 2020 that 2022 would be a strong bounce back year and unfortunately for the tranquility of my vacations, we were right .... and.....just wait until the Brazilians come and then the UK'ers in August Sept. ...Myself, I've cancelled my 2022 Orlando vacations since it's just going to be too crowded. I'm predicting though that 2023 will be a bit softer, between the covid bounce back should be gone by then and the economy probably will be softer, interest rate rises etc.

Agree, While I think we are all glad that Uni is doing well so they continue funding all the improvements, the crowds are becoming a challenge to our vacations.. Still planning for a Sept. HHH, but may pass on December this year. In a weird way, I really miss the Covid crowds(or lack of) :crazy:

 

[shiekra38]

Universal theme parks had a 152%increase in revenue during the first quarter 2022. Adjusted earnings of $451 million. Revenue increased by $941 million to $1.6 Billion.
Universal 'Orlando' generated the the highest Adjusted EBITDA in it's history. (I guess Mardi Gras was a wild success this year).
CEO Jeff Shell. "Bookings going forward, looking at the summer, are at historic levels"...
Universal added the caveat that International visitation is still only half of historic levels, so that number will probably have huge increases going forward.

This is great to see, but I'm curious when these numbers will level off

There are a lot of factors that may make Q2 and Q3 a bit less spectacular

Still though...Comcast stock is not terrible to own

 

[vgp]

Still though...Comcast stock is not terrible to own

For reasons I can't quite figure out, CMCSA is down 32% from its high only 7 months ago, despite having solid results every quarter. They're trading at a 14 P/E (which is absurdly low in this market) and while they've put a lot into Peacock, it's not nearly the same exposure as say Disney/Netflix/Roku if streaming volatility is to blame. It's puzzling to me.

 

[Mad Dog]

For reasons I can't quite figure out, CMCSA is down 32% from its high only 7 months ago, despite having solid results every quarter. They're trading at a 14 P/E (which is absurdly low in this market) and while they've put a lot into Peacock, it's not nearly the same exposure as say Disney/Netflix/Roku if streaming volatility is to blame. It's puzzling to me.

The entire market is in a bit of a bearish mode. I wouldn't read too much into the stock prices right now.

 

[OrlandoGuy]

For reasons I can't quite figure out, CMCSA is down 32% from its high only 7 months ago, despite having solid results every quarter. They're trading at a 14 P/E (which is absurdly low in this market) and while they've put a lot into Peacock, it's not nearly the same exposure as say Disney/Netflix/Roku if streaming volatility is to blame. It's puzzling to me.

Like @Mad Dog said, the market is just in a weird spot. My company is coming off a record quarter but with no change in share price at all. A lot of individual industries are doing really well while a lot aren’t, so nothing about the big picture is attractive to investors right now. Couple that with how bleak some things still look internationally and the actions that really move the needle on a macro scale just aren’t happening.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

Sooner or later Universal is going to have to upgrade its infrastructure to support the crowds they are, and will, continue to see.

The security screening area needs a fix once EU comes online, and they really need to move away from physical turnstiles. It's such a breeze using a phone to get into WDW.

 

[UNIrd]

Basically making Mardi Gras a Food & Wine Festival has helped greatly, but also remember that both Shrek and Mummy were down the entire quarter, too. I'm sure the Tribute store actually sold a lot more merch this year too considering there was no parade last year and much lower attendance.

Great point. And where are they funneling these extra crowds to? Beat Builders? They need to get more entertainment online quick.

 

[tielo]

I think the addition of Epic Universe will level the crowds in the parks for the next 5 to 10 years after the opening for the whole resort. Sure there will be growth but the parks can handle that.
Filling in kids zone and the empty theater spaces in the current parks also helps putting butts in seats and from the walkways.
In the end Comcast will continue invest aggressively in their theme parks and that is a good thing.