Hasbro, Again Buoyed by Disney Offerings, Beats Expectations
July 18 2016 - 7:50AM
Dow Jones News
Hasbro Inc. reported better-than-expected revenue and profit in
its latest quarter, as offerings such as Star Wars and Frozen brand
toys through its Walt Disney Co. license continue to drive growth
at the toy maker.
Hasbro said its recently acquired, and closely watched, line of
reimagined Disney Princess and Frozen dolls helped boost the girls
segment, with segment sales increasing 35% to $172.3 million. In
2014, Hasbro won the rights to the popular dolls away from
toy-making rival Mattel Inc.
Sales of NERF products, as well as Hasbro's deep lineup of Star
Wars-themed toys tied to the release of the latest film in the
series, helped boost sales in its boys segment 4% to $355.1 million
compared with a year ago. The preschool category increased 5%,
helped by Play-Doh.
Hasbro's games segment rose 8%. Sales of Pie Face and Yahtzee
were among the brands contributing to growth.
In all, Hasbro posted a profit of $52.1 million, or 41 cents a
share, up from $41.8 million, or 33 cents a share, a year prior.
Revenue increased 10% to $878.9 million. Excluding headwinds from
foreign exchange, the company said revenue rose 12% in the
period.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had forecast adjusted
per-share earnings of 39 cents a share on revenue of $859
million.
Hasbro's strength comes as the toy industry has experienced a
resurgence lately, easing concerns that playing with traditional
toys had ceded ground to children tapping away at smartphones and
tablets. Toy sales rose 6.7% in the U.S. last year, the best
results in more than a decade, according to research firm NPD Group
Inc.
Mattel reports its results on Wednesday. While it has struggled
recently, Mattel has taken some steps to bolster its operations. In
April, Mattel reported its loss widened as Barbie sales fell and it
was unable to make up for the loss of the Disney license to
Hasbro.
Hasbro shares, which have increased 27% so far this year, were
inactive in premarket trading.
Write to Joshua Jamerson at joshua.jamerson@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 18, 2016 07:35 ET (11:35 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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