Shares of Ardent Leisure Group (ASX: AAD) have been on the nose with investors in recent months and have been sold off heavily in March.
The leisure and entertainment group, which owns Dreamworld on the Gold Coast, Good Life Health Clubs and more, recently announced the departure of its long-running CEO Greg Shaw as well as the appointment of his successor, Ms Deborah Thomas.
Thomas is the former editor of The Australian Women's Weekly magazine and many analysts have questioned the suitability of her appointment as the head of one of Australia's most complex public companies. That is likely the reason behind the stock's 11% fall since Wednesday last week, with the shares now trading at $2.15, down 38% since late October.
To be fair, Thomas hasn't yet had the opportunity to prove her worth to shareholders. At the time of her appointment, Fairfax quoted her as saying: "We are putting a lot of money into new products but we really need to improve marketing, and improve the per capita spend… At Dreamworld the numbers are up but the dollars are down."
While the Board has expressed its confidence in Thomas, saying that she developed a considerable understanding of the group's diverse portfolio over the previous 15 months, the market won't be easily convinced. Ardent Leisure reported a 16% fall in net profit in its most recent half-year period and investors will look for a sharp improvement in the periods to come.
Although it is currently unclear what Thomas will bring to the company, Ardent Leisure's shares could certainly be worth a second look. Alternatively, investors could also look at Village Roadshow Ltd (ASX: VRL) – the owner of three rival theme parks on the Gold Coast – which has also fallen heavily in price recently.
