SeaWorld Is Taking A Beating

The stock was down as much as 7.4%, but is now paring some of its losses.

This comes on the back of reports that California assemblyman Richard Bloom is introducing legislation to phase out captivity of whales and dolphins, according to Candace Calloway Whiting at Seattlepi.com. And remember, SeaWorld has a location in San Diego.

From Whiting:

"If the bill passes into law, it will allow for the gradual transition of Orca confinement from entertainment purposes to solely keeping Orcas captive for research, rescue, and rehabilitation. It would prevent the breeding of captive animals, and require that those animals maintained in captivity either be released to the wild or be kept in sea pens, which are defined as open water enclosures, anchored to the seafloor and the shoreline. The sea pens must be accessible to the public, but shows and entertainment are not allowed."

Bloom is expected to hold a press conference today.

SeaWorld has had a ton of bad publicity after the release of the damning documentary Blackfish last year.

The stock however is up 15.6% year-to-date, but down 0.6% since it went public last year.

This five-day chart shows today's sell-off: