Hasbro beats estimates on strong demand for Disney Princess dolls

By Subrat Patnaik

(Reuters) – Hasbro Inc reported higher-than-expected quarterly profit and revenue, driven by strong demand for Disney Princess and Frozen dolls and action figures based on “Star Wars” movies.

However, the toymaker’s shares fell as much as 7.6 percent in noon trading on Monday, which analysts attributed to factors such as slowing sales of toys targeted at boys, inflated Street expectations and a near 30 percent runup in the stock this year.

Sales growth in toys targeted at boys – Hasbro’s largest business – dropped to 4 percent in the second quarter from 24-32 percent in the prior three quarters. The category accounts for more than a third of total revenue.

The “sharp slowdown” in sales growth in the category was “worrisome”, Jefferies analyst Trevor Young said.

Chief Executive Brian Goldner said the category was hit due to a massive drop in sales of toys based on “Jurassic Park” and “Jurassic World” films and Hasbro would no longer make “Jurassic Park” toys from the end of 2017.

Revenue from toys targeted at girls jumped 35 percent as Hasbro benefited from demand for dolls based on Walt Disney Co’s princesses such as Cinderella and Snow White.

Hasbro acquired the rights to make these dolls in 2014 and started selling them this year.

GREAT EXPECTATIONS

Hasbro’s quarterly sales beat analysts’ expectations by a margin of 2.3 percent, compared with 3-8 percent in five of the prior six quarters, according to Thomson Reuters data.

Investors were getting accustomed to a big beat and this “straight down the middle fairway” quarter feels like a disappointment, Piper Jaffray & Co analyst Stephanie Wissink said. “If I was a long-term investor in this story, what happened today would not shake my confidence.”

Goldner said on a conference call that Hasbro would start shipping toys based on “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” in the current quarter. Dolls based on DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc’s movie “Trolls” will hit the stores in August.

Goldner also said Britain’s vote to exit the European Union had created some near-term uncertainty, but Hasbro was yet to see any negative impact.

The net income attributable to Hasbro jumped 24.6 percent to $52.1 million, or 41 cents per share, in the quarter ended June 26, while revenue rose 10 percent to $878.9 million.

Analysts on average had expected earnings of 39 cents per share and revenue of $859 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

(Reporting by Subrat Patnaik in Bengaluru; Editing by Kirti Pandey)