SeaWorld is going public. Earlier today, the Orlando based SeaWorld Entertainment filed for an initial public offering, paving the way for an offering in 2013.
SeaWorld, owned by Blackstone Group LP (NYSE: BX), has long been rumored for a spinoff. The IPO will be managed by Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE: GS), JP Morgan Chase (NYSE: JPM), Citigroup (NYSE: C), Bank of America (NYSE: BAC), Barclays (NYSE: BCS), and Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC). The initial registration filed calls for $100 million in the issue. According to the filing, Blackstone will keep the majority of SeaWorld’s voting rights after the IPO and SeaWorld’s ticker will be SEAS. Although the company did not give an exact date for the IPO, SeaWorld could go public by early 2013 and raise at least $500 million, sources told Bloomberg.
Dennis Speigel, theme park expert and consultant told Orlando Business Journal that he expects the IPO to help SeaWorld join the ranks of Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) and Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSA), owner of NBC/Universal and the Universal theme parks, both of which already are publicly traded companies.
The IPO will prove an important milestone for SeaWorld, and Blackstone Group as it tries to further monetize its investment. Access to a greater source of capital will enable the firm to compete more directly with its competitors, while also giving Blackstone the ability to fair market value their investment in SeaWorld, making a full out future sale also possible. The theme park business is changing, and while SeaWorld is a less traditional theme park than its fellow Orlando occupants Disney and Universal, they possess a strong and loyal client base. Going public will inevitably change the company, but in the long run, it likely will be for the better.
