Is FUN a good stock to buy? We came across a bullish thesis on Six Flags Entertainment Corporation on High Yield Landlord’s Substack by Jussi Askola, CFA. In this article, we will summarize the bulls’ thesis on FUN. Six Flags Entertainment Corporation’s share was trading at $19.27 as of April 20th. FUN’s trailing and forward P/E were 17.57 and 1.00k respectively according to Yahoo Finance.
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Six Flags Entertainment Corporation operates amusement parks and resort properties in North America. FUN presents a compelling opportunity tied to the potential monetization of its substantial real estate holdings. Following its 2024 merger with Cedar Fair, FUN now operates over 40 theme parks across the U.S. and has expanded internationally with its Qiddiya City park in Saudi Arabia. The company carries over $5 billion in debt, with a net debt-to-EBITDA ratio exceeding 6x, while generating a $7.2 billion enterprise value and a $1.7 billion market capitalization.
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For years, activist investor Jonathan Litt and his Land & Buildings (L&B) firm have advocated for a PropCo/OpCo separation, estimating that FUN could unlock up to $6 billion in real estate value. This would enable the operational business to substantially reduce leverage while retaining funds for park reinvestment. Historically, FUN’s management has prioritized operational efficiencies and gradual deleveraging, resisting full-scale real estate monetization.
However, the entry of Jana Partners, holding approximately 9% of FUN, increases activist pressure to explore strategic alternatives, including a potential real estate spinoff. Analysts project that unlocking the real estate could result in over 75% immediate upside, with potential gains approaching 130% if EBITDA recovers to pre-pandemic guidance levels.
While some estimates are aggressive, the underlying theme park properties are undervalued relative to their intrinsic worth. Even without a full spinoff, the operational improvements and deleveraging initiatives provide a pathway for value realization. Overall, FUN represents a unique investment scenario where strategic monetization of real estate could significantly re-rate the stock, reduce leverage, and create substantial shareholder value, making it a theme park operator with a rare combination of operational scale and hidden asset potential.
