Profitability Measurement of UK Theme Parks: An Aggregate Approach

Traditionally, financial ratios were used for profitability measurement. This research attempts to apply data envelopment analysis (DEA) to aggregate various financial ratios into a composite profitability index. The research sample includes 13 parks managed by 10 leading theme park operators in the UK. The result first reveals that multi-site operators are significantly more profitable than their single-site rivals. Furthermore, the consistency between DEA and ratio analysis indicates that DEA can be used as a good proxy of ratio analysis. It is hoped that this approach can provide new insights about financial measurement not available to managers through ratio analysis. Copyright (C) 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.