Hasbro's fortunes are closely tied to Disney's (DIS) movie slate — and there were no new "Star Wars" or Disney Princess movies during the 2018 holiday season.
Hasbro (HAS) reported fourth-quarter sales and profits that missed forecasts. Its stock fell nearly 5% Friday.
Hasbro's own toy brands, including Nerf, My Little Pony and Transformers, posted a decline in sales.
But don't count out Hasbro just yet.
Hasbro could very well rebound this year since Disney has a ridiculous slate of movies on the 2019 release calendar, including "Captain Marvel" and "Avengers: Endgame," Pixar"s "Toy Story 4," "Frozen 2," and the yet to be titled Star Wars: Episode IX.
Mattel, (MAT) by contrast, relies on its core franchises, including Barbie and Hot Wheels. Both reported strong increases in sales last quarter. The company posted a surprise profit and sales that topped Wall Street's estimates. Mattel's stock surged more than 20%.
Although Mattel's strategy worked better last quarter, the toymaker wants to take a page from Hasbro's media-dependent playbook. It wants to take advantage of its iconic brands, planning to turn them into true multimedia franchises.
Mattel recently disclosed plans for a live-action Barbie movie starring Margot Robbie as well as a live-action Hot Wheels film. Both will be produced by Warner Bros., the studio that is also owned by CNN parent company AT&T. (T)
Mattel also announced earlier this week that it had hired Adam Bonnett, who had spent more than two decades at the Disney Channel, to lead Mattel's TV efforts.
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