VILLAGE ROADSHOW REVENUES HIT BY DREAMWORLD TRAGEDY

Village Roadshow (ASX: VRL), which owns Movie World, Sea World, and Wet'n'Wild says the deaths of four people on a ride at Dreamworld on the Gold Coast is significantly hitting visitor numbers and earnings at its own theme parks.

The company says it expects its full-year earnings from its theme parks to be approximately $55 million, down from $88 million in the 2015-16 financial year.

"The Australian theme park operations continued to be significantly impacted by the tragedy," says Village Roadshow in a statement to the ASX.

The company says visitation numbers across its Gold Coast theme parks and Wet'n'Wild in Sydney had taken a hit and it expects to take a pre-tax impairment of approximately $65 million on the carrying value of Wet'n'Wild Sydney.

Ardent Leisure (ASX: AAD), the company which owns Dreamworld, has reported sharp visitation and revenue drops from its theme parks following the deaths of four people last October on its Thunder River Rapids ride.

Village Roadshow also reported that earnings from its cinema division, which includes Village Cinemas, Gold Class and Vmax, are expected to be lower than last year's record $82 million.

The company expects its net profit before material items and discontinued operations to be between $20 million and $30 million, down from $50.9 million in the previous year.

Business News Australia