Watch Out Disney, Universal Reports Highest On Record Theme Parks Revenue. NBCUniversal has recently released their earnings for Q3 and it certainly shows that the Universal theme parks across the world are pulling in the crowds and the revenue.
For Q3, the theme parks division adjusted EBITDA is $819m which is the highest on record. So far this year from January 1 – September 30, 2022 the EBITDA is a huge $1,902 million. This shows a growth from pre-pandemic levels compared to $1,819 million for 2019. Universal Beijing’s opening in 2021 has generated new revenue and likely contributed to this.
Comcast Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, Brian Roberts said, “At our US parks, we continue to see strong demand with attendance and guest spending increasing year-over-year. In fact, Orlando, broke a new record delivering its highest level of EBITDA for a third quarter despite the park being closed for two days due to Hurricane Ian. Universal Japan, continues to rebound since capacity restrictions were lifted at the end of March and compared to last year when the park operated under more strict COVID-related controls.”
He also said, “Our Park segment continues to be a real standout generating the highest quarterly EBITDA on record driven by growth in each of our geographies including Beijing which hit profitability for the first time since the grand opening last September. We’re seeing clear evidence that the investments we made throughout the pandemic continue to pay off.”
We can only expect this revenue to increase further as we head towards the grand opening of Epic Universe in the summer of 2025. It is clear that Universal is investing heavily in their theme park sector and we are confident that they will reap the rewards. When Epic Universe does open in 2025, Universal will finally be able to compete with Disney in being a week long attraction.
Walt Disney World will be hoping that when TRON Lightcycle / Run opens next year it will pull in the crowds and when Epic Universe opens in 2025 it will be interesting to see if Disney sees a drop in attendance and revenue. Looking into the future at this point it seems as if Universal is going the right way and is on the up, we will just have to see what impact this has on Disney!
