Six Flags Entertainment (NYSE:FUN) Upgraded to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Six Flags Entertainment (NYSE:FUN) was upgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other analysts also recently commented on the stock. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on shares of Six Flags Entertainment in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings lowered Six Flags Entertainment from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (e+)” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Truist Financial upped their target price on Six Flags Entertainment from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Six Flags Entertainment from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Citizens Jmp assumed coverage on shares of Six Flags Entertainment in a report on Monday, June 29th. They set a “market outperform” rating and a $29.00 price objective for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $25.00.

Six Flags Entertainment Stock Up 2.8%

Shares of NYSE:FUN opened at $18.12 on Monday. Six Flags Entertainment has a 52 week low of $12.51 and a 52 week high of $31.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 19.13, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.68. The company has a market cap of $1.85 billion, a PE ratio of -1.11 and a beta of 0.40. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $20.45 and a 200 day simple moving average of $18.85.

Six Flags Entertainment (NYSE:FUN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported ($2.65) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($2.71) by $0.06. Six Flags Entertainment had a positive return on equity of 5.17% and a negative net margin of 52.76%.The company had revenue of $225.63 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $207.49 million. As a group, research analysts expect that Six Flags Entertainment will post -0.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Rehan Jaffer bought 125,000 shares of Six Flags Entertainment stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $23.41 per share, with a total value of $2,926,250.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 4,900,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $114,709,000. This trade represents a 2.62% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Richard M. Haddrill purchased 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $19.08 per share, for a total transaction of $190,800.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider owned 230,117 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,390,632.36. This represents a 4.54% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have purchased 265,000 shares of company stock worth $6,173,850. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FUN. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in Six Flags Entertainment by 62.1% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 9,473,532 shares of the company’s stock valued at $145,324,000 after buying an additional 3,629,445 shares during the last quarter. Darlington Partners Capital Management LP boosted its position in Six Flags Entertainment by 20.2% during the second quarter. Darlington Partners Capital Management LP now owns 8,700,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $264,741,000 after purchasing an additional 1,460,000 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG grew its stake in Six Flags Entertainment by 533.4% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 5,279,720 shares of the company’s stock valued at $80,991,000 after purchasing an additional 4,446,104 shares in the last quarter. Dendur Capital LP increased its position in shares of Six Flags Entertainment by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. Dendur Capital LP now owns 4,953,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $75,987,000 after purchasing an additional 290,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rush Island Management LP bought a new position in shares of Six Flags Entertainment in the second quarter valued at $115,454,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.65% of the company’s stock.

About Six Flags Entertainment

Six Flags Entertainment Corporation is a publicly traded regional theme park operator based in Arlington, Texas. The company develops, owns and operates amusement and water parks, offering a diverse portfolio of thrill rides, family attractions, live entertainment, food and beverage offerings, and retail merchandise. Its main revenue streams include single-day tickets, season passes, on-site accommodations, in-park retail sales, and food and beverage services.

Founded in 1961 by Angus G.