Visitors carrying masks experience on a curler coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain on its first day of reopening to members and go holders in Valencia, Calif., on April 1, 2021.

Jae C. Hong/AP

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Jae C. Hong/AP

Visitors carrying masks experience on a curler coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain on its first day of reopening to members and go holders in Valencia, Calif., on April 1, 2021.

Jae C. Hong/AP

Cedar Fair and Six Flags are merging to create an expansive amusement park operator with operations unfold throughout 17 U.S. states and three international locations.

The mixed firm, price greater than $3.5 billion, will boast 27 amusement parks, 15 water parks and 9 resort properties within the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. It can even have leisure partnerships and a portfolio of mental property together with Looney Tunes, DC Comics and Peanuts.

Amusement parks have seen an uptick in income however have struggled to boost attendance for the reason that pandemic, at the same time as different leisure sectors have bounced again. A tie-up between two enormous gamers is predicted to at the very least decrease prices.

Cedar Fair reported an attendance of 12.4 million visitors in its third quarter, a 1% improve from a yr earlier. Six Flags introduced a 16% rise in its third-quarter attendance, which totaled 9.3 million visitors.

But amusement parks, together with Six Flags, has struggled to get individuals by way of the gates, stated James Hardiman at Citi Investment Research.

“Whereas the theme park industry as a whole has been under significant pressure since the start of the pandemic, Six Flags has created additional pressure of its own, with a volatile new attendance and pricing strategy that has struggled to take root, alienating its core customers and leading to dramatic drops in visitation along the way,” Hardiman wrote.

Six Flags and Cedar Fair, which have little geographical overlap, anticipate $120 million in value financial savings inside two years of closing the deal.

Six Flags and Cedar Fair have talked about potential offers earlier than, with Six Flags beforehand making a suggestion for Cedar Fair in 2019, however it was turned down. SeaWorld approached Cedar Fair with a bid final yr, however that proposal was additionally rejected.

Under the settlement introduced Thursday, Cedar Fair unitholders will obtain one share of frequent inventory within the mixed firm for every unit owned, whereas Six Flags shareholders will obtain 0.5800 shares of inventory within the mixed firm for every share owned.

Cedar Fair unitholders will personal roughly 51.2% of the mixed firm, whereas Six Flags shareholders will personal about 48.8%.

“Our merger with Six Flags will bring together two of North America’s iconic amusement park companies to establish a highly diversified footprint and a more robust operating model to enhance park offerings and performance,” Cedar Fair CEO Richard Zimmerman stated in a ready assertion.

Zimmerman might be president and CEO of the mixed firm. Selim Bassoul, president and CEO of Six Flags, will develop into government chairman.

The corporations stated that given their broader geographic footprint as a single firm, seasonal volatility ought to reasonable.

The firm’s newly shaped board will embrace six administrators from Cedar Fair and 6 administrators from Six Flags.

The firm might be headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, and can maintain important finance and administrative operations in Sandusky, Ohio, the place Cedar Fair is predicated.

Six Flags is now primarily based in Arlington, Texas.

Once the deal closes, the mixed firm will function below the identify Six Flags and commerce below the ticker image “FUN” on the New York Stock Exchange.

The transaction, which was permitted by each corporations’ boards, is focused to shut within the first half of subsequent yr. It nonetheless wants approval from Six Flags shareholders.

Shares of Six Flags Entertainment Corp. and Cedar Fair LP have been basically flat earlier than the opening bell Thursday, however each are up greater than 9% this week after rumors of a deal started to unfold.