Coast Entertainment Holdings Limited (CEH) Earnings Call Transcript & Summary

Thank you for standing by. Welcome to the Ardent Leisure Group Limited Extraordinary General Meeting. I'd now like to hand you over to Dr. Gary Weiss, Chairman. Please go ahead.

Thank you. Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the Annual General Meeting of Ardent Leisure Group Limited. My name is Gary Weiss, and I'm the Chairman of Ardent Leisure. This year, Ardent's Annual General Meeting is being conducted in a hybrid format, allowing shareholders to participate either in person or virtually via the online platform. Before I formally open the meeting, I will outline some procedural matters on today's meeting for those who are joining us virtually. If you experience any technical issues during the meeting, we have published a virtual meeting guide on our website, which includes details on how to seek assistance. A recording of today's meeting will be available on our website later this afternoon. Shareholders who are online will have the opportunity to ask questions via the virtual meeting platform. If you are a shareholder or proxy, attorney or representative of a shareholder and wish to ask a question online about an item of business, please click the icon Ask a Question on your screen, select the item of business your question relates to and then click submit question once you have typed your question. And if you have questions already prepared, please submit them now on the platform so that we can consider them as and when we come to the relevant agenda item. You do not need to wait until the relevant item of business. At the conclusion of the meeting, we will endeavor to respond to any shareholder questions of a general nature that may not have been addressed in the business update or if we consider a response would benefit all shareholders. I now confirm that a quorum is present and I declare the meeting open. It is my pleasure to introduce you to the members of the Ardent Leisure Board in attendance today. David Haslingden joins me in person in Sydney, and joining us online from the United States are Brad Richmond, Randy Garfield and Erin Wallace. I would also like to welcome members of the executive team online from the Gold Coast is Greg Yong, Group Chief Executive Officer. And joining me here in Sydney is José De Sacadura, Acting Group Chief Financial Officer. The Group's auditor, Ernst & Young, represented by John Robinson is also in attendance online today and is available to answer questions in relation to the auditors' report. The format for today's meeting will be as follows: I will start by providing some opening remarks regarding the activities and performance of the Group for the year, and we'll then hand over to Greg to provide more detailed updates on the Theme Parks & Attractions business. We will then move to the formal business of the meeting and put to shareholders a resolution set out in the Notice of Meeting. All resolutions to be put to the meeting today will be decided by way of poll. Shareholders attending the meeting will be able to cast their vote using ballot papers if attending in person or the electronic voting card received when your online registration is validated if attending online. Further information and assistance with online voting can be found in the virtual meeting guide available on the Group's website. FY '22 was another significant year for Ardent Leisure with the Group delivering a solid trading performance, which significantly outperformed FY '19 pre-COVID levels despite some ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The year concluded an important chapter in the history of Ardent Leisure Group, representing the final contribution of Main Event of the Group. The FY '22 results reflect a significant turnaround at Main Event which have taken place over the last 4 years with main event recording revenue of USD 426.2 million, up almost 60% on the prior year; and an EBITDA contribution, excluding specific items of USD 106.5 million, up nearly 175% on the prior year. We are proud of the strong performance achieved at Main Event over this period, and I particularly wish to call out and acknowledge the outstanding contribution to the Group by Chris Morris, Darin Harper, and all of our former colleagues at Main Event. During FY '22, the Theme Parks & Attractions business showed a marked improvement in momentum, achieving revenue of $49.5 million, up 37% on the prior year. Visitation levels were 18% higher and ticket sales and yields were significantly improved. The division's EBITDA was, however, distorted by a net benefit of $10.5 million in government grants and subsidies received in the prior year compared to only $2 million received in FY '22. Excluding these grants and subsidies, Theme Parks' EBITDA excluding specific items improved $3.8 million or 18% compared to the prior year. The second half of FY '22 demonstrated a strong turnaround and performance trends of the business, and it is pleasing to see this positive recovery momentum continuing into FY '23. At the bottom line, the Group reported a statutory net loss after tax of $97.4 million compared to $86.9 million in FY '21. However, it is important to note that this result was impacted by several significant one-off specific items, including some significant costs associated with the sale of Main Event ahead of its completion in early FY '23. As notified at Ardent's year-end results announcement, the sale of the Group's interest in Main Event completed on June 30, 2022. Subsequently, the Group has received post-completion proceeds of USD 9 million in October 2022, following the finalization of working capital adjustments. Slide 5 of the AGM presentation shows the pro forma assets and liabilities of the Group as at June 28, 2022, after adjusting for the sale of Main Event and subsequent repayment of debt and payments to shareholders. The information presented demonstrates how this transaction has significantly strengthened Ardent's balance sheet. As a result of the Main Event sale, the group was able to fully repay its debt and returned almost $456 million to shareholders via return of capital and special unfranked dividend. With substantial cash balances on hand, no debt and significant unencumbered assets, the group is now well placed to continue to invest in and support the recovery and growth of our Theme Parks & Attractions business moving forward. This recovery presents substantial potential upside opportunities for the Group, notably the following: At June 28, 2022, the assets of Dreamworld and SkyPoint were carried at an impaired value of $118 million. Prior to the Dreamworld incident and COVID-19, these assets had a collective carrying value of $275 million, demonstrating the potential uplift in value, which could be achieved with recovery of the business. The value of deferred tax assets in the June 2020 balance sheet excluded almost $123 million of Australian tax losses and $50 million of deductible temporary differences, with a combined potential tax benefit of $52 million. Although a deferred tax asset was not recognized for these items in June 2022, they remain available for use by the group going forward. The pro forma balance sheet presented does not include any receivable for Ardent's share of further deferred and contingent consideration of up to USD 14.5 million from the Main Event sale, which is payable upon the utilization of certain Main Event tax losses by Dave & Buster's in the future. In conclusion, the group is now well positioned to ensure that the ongoing recovery of its Theme Parks & Attractions business has given every chance of success. FY '22 marked a turning point in performance trends of the business. We are pleased to see this positive recovery momentum continuing into FY '23. With this recovery now underway, the Board believes that there is good scope to rebuild shareholder value over the medium term. On behalf of my Board colleagues, I would like to thank all our team members for their hard work, dedication and resilience this year. It is now my pleasure to invite Greg Yong to provide an update on the Theme Parks & Attractions business. Following this update, we will move to the formal business of the meeting.

Thank you, Gary, and good morning to everyone listening today. Before we start, I'd like to mention that we gave a comprehensive summary of the FY '22 results and of our strategic pillars earlier this year. Today, I intend to provide a brief summary of those results, but moreover, how we are trading after the first quarter. I refer interested stakeholders to our August presentation for more details. On Slide 7, we've called out the key financial highlights for the FY '22 year. As we have indicated, these results have been provided, excluding the impact of government grants and subsidies, which had a material impact on the performance over the peak pandemic years. We believe this represents a more transparent view of underlying operational performance in the business. FY '22 EBITDA improved 18% due to a 37% uplift in revenue, driven by growth in both attendances and per cap yields. As we discussed during the full year results call, the results for last year were promising given the business was severely impacted by border closures and lockdowns for almost the entire first half and was despite higher than average rainfall throughout the second half. Turning to Slide 8. When we last updated the market, we called out the positive momentum that we had seen in the second half of FY '22 and the strong early tons that we were seeing in July 2023 as we enter the new financial year. In the second half of FY '22, revenues were up 35% on the prior corresponding period. In Q1, we've seen an acceleration with revenues up 154% on the pcp, which were up 192% on that prior year. This is the highest Q1 revenue that we've seen now since the TRRR accident in FY '17. I'm also very pleased to advise that on an unaudited basis, Dreamworld has achieved its first positive EBITDA quarter since the tragedy end in October 2016. And whilst we do not intend to report granular quarterly results, I will say that the fundamentals I've called out in the recent presentations are driving this change. And that is to say that the performance is on the back of improvements in revenue based on close management of ticketing yields, coupled with excellent execution of new revenue-driving initiatives. This has been underpinned by our ongoing focus on cost discipline, which allows us to funnel spending to pay for our priorities in safety and service across the organization. I would like to also call out the great performance we're seeing at SkyPoint where EBITDA is nearing pre-pandemic levels despite international visitation remaining at essentially negligible levels. On Slide 9, we've illustrated the ongoing improvements we're seeing in yield across the organization. I'm particularly pleased that Admissions' yields are holding up despite changes in mix year-on-year. As you'll recall, in the first half of last year, all the borders were closed, and we were essentially selling only annual passes, which are our highest yielding ticket. As borders have reopened, the ticketing mix has rebased with more single day and multi-day tickets, which are, by their very nature, dilutionary to admissions yields. When considering this high annual pass ratio that we were seeing last year, the increases in yield into FY '23 is pleasing. In Park performance has also continued to be very strong, driven partly by close attention to pricing, but in the main through our commitment to quality and innovation across both our retail and the culinary businesses. Lastly, Attendances continue to build and we attribute much of this to our focus on being the best at basics along with our investments in the seasonal event program, which I will discuss later in the presentation. It is prudent that we call out the uncertainty seen in the external environment with macroeconomic challenges to pertaining to inflation, along with La Niña forecasts being well reported. Out-of-home entertainment whilst not immune, has proven to be much more resilient to economic shocks than other industries, and we contain that the changes made in the business over the past several years provide us with the most flexibility to deal with these headwinds if they become more apparent. On Slide 10, we've restated what our primary strategic drivers are. There is much work happening in the organization to consolidate these initiatives whilst we also turn it on to the future and contemplate what will take us forward once the bulk of these programs have matured. I spent a lot of time on this in the full year results. So I'll not go into that level of detail today, but I would like to call out two key items. Firstly, Ardent has granted its major amusement park licenses led by the Queensland government in August this year. The regulations in Queensland are arguably the most robust in the world, and I cannot express how proud I am of our entire team for the years of effort that they put into all aspects of safety management to achieve this result. And secondly, our focus on the guest service side of the business remains core to what we do. This really is the dream of different visitors on our properties. I'm pleased to say that our guest service scores were the highest in our competitive set for the first quarter, which is a continuation of the outstanding results that we saw in the second half of last year. And I can truly say that we are only just getting started on that journey. Once again, I cannot be prouder of each and every person and our team for the care and the attention they give to our guests each and every day. Turning to Slide 11. Our business focus after safety is to drive revenue. This is the fundamental driver that we need to return to historical performance. We appreciate the importance of Attractions to that story. And later this month, we'll be announcing some significant changes to outline our plans for the next few years. We are very excited about these new products, which have been very carefully curated to what our guests are looking for in a theme park experience. Importantly, we'll be bringing new attractions to the market in each year, which is crucial in maintaining the trajectory that we're currently seeing. Moving to Slide 12, our ongoing event program. Since our last discussion, we have held Spring County Fair, and Happy Halloween with both the exceptionally well received by our guests and seeing positive net promoter scores on last year. Later this month, we'll also be announcing some further developments in this space. So in summary, and on Slide 13, we are extremely optimistic about the future year at Ardent. Our FY '22 results have been well covered, and we have seen a further acceleration in performance so far this year. We are absolutely delighted to have seen our first quarterly profit for Dreamworld since October 2016. This is a meaningful milestone in our recovery journey, but it is just the start. And we recognize that we have much to achieve that we feel with our strong balance sheet, consisting of 100% owned and unencumbered land holdings, no debt, and what we are seeing now is very promising recent performance that the business is well positioned to deliver value to all of our stakeholders. I'd like to thank my personal thanks to the entire team for their ongoing commitment and dedication, and I'll now hand back to Gary to conduct the formal business of the meeting.

Thank you, Greg. We will now move to the formal business of the meeting. The resolutions for consideration today may only be voted on by shareholders, proxy holders and shareholder company representatives. I propose to call a poll on each of the resolutions. As a reminder, shareholders attending via the online platform will have the opportunity to ask questions on each matter being put to the meeting. If you have questions already prepared, please go ahead and submit them now. The first item of ordinary business is to receive the annual financial report, the Director's report and the independent external auditor's report for the company for the financial year ended June 28, 2022. The remuneration report will be put to a vote for adoption separately. Are there any questions from those persons present in relation to the annual financial report, the Director's report or the independent external auditor's report? Chris, have we received any online questions in relation to this item of business?

No questions, Gary.

Thank you. Resolution 1 on the notice of meeting is to adopt the remuneration report for the year ended June 28, 2022. The remuneration report is included in the annual report and has been made available to shareholders. Investors should note that the vote in relation to the adoption of the remuneration report is not binding on the company or the directors. The company will disregard any votes cast on Resolution 1 that do not comply with the voting exclusion requirements of the Corporations Act as set out in the notice of meeting. I move that the remuneration report for the year ended June 28, 2022, be received, considered and adopted. The proxy results received for this resolution are on the screen. Given that the remuneration report to the year ended June 28, 2022, has received the required shareholder support, Resolution 4 will not be put to shareholders. Are there any questions from those persons present in relation to the remuneration report? Appear to be none. Chris, any online questions?

No questions, Gary.

Thank you. I'll now move to the next item of business. Resolution 2 on the Notice of Meeting is to reelect David Haslingden as a Director of the company. Details in relation to David's background, experience and qualifications have been provided in the Notice of Meeting. I move that David Haslingden who retires by rotation in accordance with Clause 6.1(f) of the company's constitution and being eligible for reelection, be reelected as a director. The proxy results for this resolution are on the screen. Are there any questions in the room relating to this resolution? Appear to be none. Chris, any online questions.

No questions, Gary.

Thank you. I'll now move to the next item of business. Resolution 3 in the notice of meeting is to elect Erin Wallace as a Director of the company. Details in relation to Erin's background, experience and qualifications have been provided in the notice of meeting. I move that Erin Wallace, following her appointment as a director to fill a casual vacancy in accordance with Clause 6.1(d) of the company's constitution and being eligible to be elected as a director. The proxy results for this resolution are on the screen. And just dealing with this resolution, if I could just say that we've been absolutely delighted to have Erin on our Board. She brings extensive experience in the theme park industry. Her qualifications and background as I've said, have been set out in the notice of meeting. And Erin has truly made a great contribution to the company since her appointment as a Director. Are there any questions relating to this resolution? Chris, any online questions?

No questions, Gary.

Appear to be none. Thank you. Before closing the meeting, I will take any questions of a general nature, which have not been specifically addressed as part of the preceding items of business or the business update. Are there any questions that any shareholder may have?

[indiscernible].

I'll pass that question to Greg to give you an update on where we are with our property holdings. Greg, do you mind responding?

Yes. Sure, Gary. I didn't quite catch the question. I think it's just an update on the land holdings and where we are in that regard. Is that correct?

Yes.

Yes.

So we have no updates to provide post our updates at the end of the FY '22 year. Our focus is to continue to optimize the value of the land and look at achieving the highest and best use in that regard. We've outlined a number of different thoughts around that. primarily, we believe that the provision of accommodation is one aspect of that, though we are open-minded to that in terms of what else we can do with the land holdings. To that end, we have had a number of conversations and are conducting a formal process now with the appropriate authorities around achieving the appropriate and requisite approvals to be able to move forward in that regard. That's the extent of what I can provide as of today. Nothing further or no adverse developments have occurred since we updated the market back at the end of the financial year.

Thank you, Greg. And if I could just add that the Board does believe there is potentially substantial latent value in terms of our land holdings, and we're looking to progress initiatives in that regard. And as and when matters do progress, we'll obviously update the market accordingly. Are there any other questions in the room? Feel free, please.

Are there any thoughts around reinstating a regular dividend payment?

None at the moment. Obviously, this is something that we will carefully monitor. Following the sale of Main Event, the Board essentially endorsed the retention of a substantial amount of capital in the business to provide a prudent measure of resources to be able to properly support investment into our Theme Parks business and its recovery. To the extent that we believe that potential performance exceeds our expectations, that will clearly provide some flexibility potentially for the Board to review our capital requirements. And again, if there is any matter to update the market in relation to that, we will do so. But I think particularly at times like the present. I think all shareholders should be comforted by the fact that we are meeting the challenges of today with an ungeared balance sheet and with substantial cash on deposit, a very enviable position amongst a lot of companies in Australia.

Yes, understood. Is there capacity to pay franked dividends in the future? Is there franking balance there that you could?

Jose, I don't believe that...

The franked balances left we have are quite minimal in the group [indiscernible] those and that would have been disclosed in -- what we've achieved in tax -- carry forward tax losses and maybe in position to pay franked dividends quite well.

Any other questions in the room? Chris, are there any online questions?

No online questions.

As there are no further questions, that now concludes the formal business of the meeting. Shareholders are reminded that they can submit their votes online until 5 minutes after the meeting closes. The results of the polls will be announced to the ASX later today. On behalf of the Board, I'd like to thank you for your support. And I now declare the meeting closed. Thank you for your attendance today.