Posts for Ticker ‘MAT’

The 100 Hardest Working Brands In The World

hersheyThere are a number of ways to rank brand values. One of the most important is the level at which a brand contributes to the market value of a public company.

24/7 Wall St. asked Corebrand, the brand research and consulting firm, to look at the top 100 brands based their contribution to market capitalizaton. Using this method, the hardest working brand was Hershey (NYSE:HSY), followed  by Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) and Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG)

Corebrand described the process briefly to 24/7 Wall. St.

24/7 Wall St.: Corebard often refers to the brands on this list as the”hardest working brands”. How did you come to that description?

Corebrand: There are a lot of people measuring and examining the “strongest brands” or the “most valuable brands”.  Our opinion is that examining one without the other is somewhat meaningless.  How “strong” a brand is nice to know but not very relevant unless you understand how that strength benefits business.  Similarly, “value” is little more than a measure of corporate size unless you understand the drivers of that value and how to influence it. By examining the strength of the brand and it’s contribution to total market value, we can help companies and their leadership manage that strength and value over time.

24/7 Wall St.: Is there any advantage or disadvantage to having a brand value be a very large percentage of market cap in the present and as an indication of a company’s future performance?

Corebrand: The brand will need to be in balance with the rest of the company’s assets.  A company should strive to have it’s brand strong enough to fend off competitors or changing market conditions but not so strong that it becomes overly dependent on the brand as a single driver of value.  If a company can achieve and maintain its appropriate maximum strength without becoming over-dependent, it will see greater returns in bull markets and retain greater value in bear markets.

The list: Read More »

Top Analyst Calls (BT, CSCO, EMC, HAS, ITW, MAT, NTAP, OMC, TEN, VECO)

These are some of the top pre-market analyst upgrades and positive research calls we have seen from Wall Street with more than two hours until the market opens:

BT Group (BT) Raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley.
Cisco Systems (CSCO) Started at Canaccord.
EMC Corp. (EMC) Started at Canaccord.
Hasbro (HAS) Started as Buy at KeyBanc.
Illinois Tool Works (ITW) Raised to Outperform at William Blair.
Mattel (MAT) Started as Buy at KeyBanc.
NetApp (NTAP) Started as Buy at Canaccord.
Omnicom (OMC) Raised to Outperform at Oppenheimer.
Tenneco (TEN) Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan.
Veeco Instruments (VECO) Started as Buy at Merriman Curhan Ford.

JON C. OGG

Tuesday’s Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (BJ, GLW, DRI, DTSI, ITW, RBS, VIA, BHP, COF, FITB, MAT, STO)

These are some of Tuesday morning’s top pre-market upgrades and downgrades we have seen from Wall Street analysts with more than two hours until the open:

  • BJ’s Wholesale (NYSE: BJ) Raised to Buy at UBS.
  • Corning (NYSE: GLW) Started as Outperform at Oppenheimer.
  • Darden restaurants (NYSE: DRI) Started as Outperform at Baird.
  • Digital Theater Systems (NASDAQ: DTSI) Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan.
  • Illinois Toolworks (NYSE: ITW) Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan.
  • Royal Bank of Scotland (NYSE: RBS) Raised to Overweight at HSBC.
  • Viacom (NYSE: VIA) Raised to Overweight at Barclays.
  • BHP Billiton (NYSE: BHP) Cut to Hold at ABN AMRO.
  • Capital One (NYSE: COF) Target cut by more than half to $18 at Goldman Sachs.
  • Fifth Third (NASDAQ: FITB) Target cut 75% down to $2.00 at Goldman Sachs.
  • Mattel (NYSE: MAT) Cut to Neutral at Piper Jaffray.
  • StatoilHydro (NYSE: STO) Cut to Underweight at Morgan Stanley.

Jon C. Ogg
February 3, 2009

Media Digest 2/3/2009 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg

NewspaperAccording to Reuters, Bank of America (BAC) and Merrill Lynch did agree on a bonus package for employees before the merger. There had been questions about the approval.

Reuters reports that January could make a new low in retail sales.

Reuters writes that Citigroup (C) is considering breaking its deal with the NY Mets for stadium naming rights.

Read More »

The 52-Week Low Club (IP)(MAT)(HAS)(ADCT)(HBAN)(RF)(NCX)

Sad_clownNOVA Chemicals (NCX) Ratings cut pushes shares down to $1.28 compard to a 52-week high of $32.46.

Regions Financial (RF) Still falling after analyst downgrades. Falls to $2.67 from 52-week high of $25.84.

International Paper (IP) Cut by Goldman Sachs. Drops to $7.87 from 52-week high of $33.77.

Hasbro (HAS) May be reaction to bad earnings at Mattel (MAT) HAS off to $21.68 from 52-week high of $41.68.

A D C Telecommunications (ADCT) Bad outlook. Big earnings charge. Drops to $3.20 from 52-week high of $17.45.

Huntington Bancshares (HBAN) Dragged down by banking sector. Hits $1.93, down from 52-week high of $14.13.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Barbie Loses Her Head (MAT)

Old_carIs the Barbie doll going the way of the Raphus cucullatus (Dodo Bird)? Mattel (MAT) posted awful sales for the last quarter.

The toy company said revenue fell 11% to $1.94 billion from $2.19 billion, based on a 6% in the U.S. and a 20% decline internationally. Mattel reported quarterly profit fell to $176.4 million, $.49, from $328.5 million in the same period a year ago.

It isn’t good news when people can’t afford cheap toys for their kids.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Hasbro vs. Mattel: Earnings From The Toy Giants (HAS, MAT)

We have seen earnings this morning from toy giants Hasbro Inc. (NYSE: HAS) and Mattel Inc. (NYSE: MAT).  One is a relative winner, while one is not.

Read More »

Media Digest 8/27/2008 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg

NewspaperAccording to Reuters, the FDIC may have to borrow money from Treasury to see it though a wave of bank failures.

Reuters reports that Lehman (LEH) has asked three investment firms to stay in the bidding for its money management arm.

Reuters reports that the NY Attorney General is looking at the relationship between Goldman Sachs (GS) and Fidelity in the sale of auction-rate securities.

Read More »

Baxter (BAX) Takes On Mattel’s (MAT) Mantle

Mattel (NYSE: MAT) may have feared it would wear the China "kick me" sign forever. Until Baxter (NYSE: BAX) came along.

The new poster boy for not keeping an eye on China suppliers has pulled its blood-thinning drug heparin off the market. The headline in The Wall Street Journal says it all: "China Planted Tied To Heparin". Reading the rest of the story is a waste of time, except for trial lawyers.

The Baxter debacle in China is yet another example of the fact that US companies will not invest money in policing their suppliers in the big Asian nation. The FDA was supposed to inspect the facility which makes the active ingredient in heparin. They did not. But, that hardly absolves Baxter of its own responsibility, especially because the drug is used in so many critical hospital procedures.

Earlier this week Baxter said it would stop production of the drug because of "reports of hundreds of allergic reactions and four deaths among the drug’s users." Baxter attorneys and management will now spend weeks preparing to testify in front of Congressmen who have recently been practicing on Roger Clemens. The FDA is also likely to be beaten like a red-headed mule.

The easy excuse for companies like Baxter is that th FDA is undermanned and companies need the agency’s help to keep an eye on China suppliers. Behind that is the reality. Baxter, and firms like it, allow products to be produced in China to save money. Unfortunately, that savings extends to not adequately monitoring what the Chinese do.

Baxter will now get its turn in the gauntlet

Douglas A. McIntyre

52-Week Low Club (December 28, 2007)

Some of these stocks hit 52-week lows and recovered off of lows so they won’t have a low close.  But these did all touch or breach the 52-week lows.  At the end we also broke out retail stocks, financial stocks, airlines & transports, and hotels.  A separate report could have been compiled for REIT’s as well, but many of those were left off because of room or volume. There were enough 52-week lows today that you might even wonder if there had been a mini-crash in the markets.  Here are the 52-week lows for December 28, 2007:

  • Advanced Micro Devices (NYSE: AMD)… imagine if the company got Hector Ruiz to leave.
  • American Greetings (NYSE: AM)…again.
  • AstraZeneca (NYSE:AZN)… new entrant.
  • Carmike Cinemas (NASDAQ:CKEC)
  • ChipMOS (NASDAQ:IMOS)
  • Corp. Office Property (NYSE: OFC)
  • Cryptologic (NASDAQ: CRYP)
  • Diebold (NYSE:DBD)
  • Fortune Brands (NYSE:FO)
  • Group 1 Auto (NYSE: GPI)
  • Infinera Corp. (NASDAQ: INFN)
  • Introgen (NASDAQ:INGN)
  • Japan Smaller Cap Fund (NYSE: JOF)
  • Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ: LAMR)
  • Legget & Platt (NYSE: LEG)
  • Martha Stewart (NYSE: MSO)
  • Marvell Tech (NASDAQ:MRVL)
  • Mattel (NYSE:MAT)
  • McClatchy (NYSE:MNI)
  • Micron Tech (NYSE:MU)
  • NGAS Resources (NASDAQ:NGAS)
  • Nortel Networks (NYSE:NT)
  • Owens Corning (NYSE:OC)
  • Omnicare (NYSE:OCR)
  • Prestige Brand (NYSE: PBH)
  • PC-Tel (NASDAQ:PCTI)
  • Ruth’s Chris (NASDAQ:RUTH)
  • SanDisk (NASDAQ: SNDK)
  • Theravance (NASDAQ:THRX)
  • Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO)
  • Wendy’s (NYSE: WEN)
  • World Fuel Services (NYSE:INT)
  • U-Store-It (NYSE:YSI)

Retail Stocks on 52-week lows: Ann Taylor (NYSE:ANN), Big Lots (NYSE:BIG), Borders Group (NYSE:BGP), Bon Ton Stores (NASDAQ:BONT), Chico’s FAS (NYSE:CHS), Finish Line (NASDAQ:FINL), Liz Claiborne (NYSE: LIZ), Macy’s (NYSE: M), Office Max (NYSE:OMX), Petsmart (NASDAQ:PETM), Stage Stores (NYSE:SSI)

Financial stocks on 52-week lows: Bear Stearns (NYSE: BSC), Citigroup (NYSE:C), Canseco (NYSE: CNO), Discover Financial (NYSE: DFS), Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB), Fortress Investment (NYSE: FIG), MBIA Inc. (NYSE: MBI), Washington Mutual (NYSE:WM)… urgh!  When does it stop?

Airlines/Transports on 52-week lows:  Airtran Holdings (NYSE: AAI)…again.  Did they launch a Friends Die Free rewards plan?  Continental Airlines (NYSE:CAL), Fedex (NYSE:FDX), Mesa Air (NASDAQ:MESA), Northwest Airlines (NYSE: NWA)… near $100 oil is a real pain.

Hotels Hitting 52-week lows: Host Hotels (NYSE: HST), Lasalle Hotel (NYSE: LHO), Starwood Hotels (NYSE:HOT), Sunstone Hotel (NYSE: SHO), Wydham Worldwide (NYSE:WYN).  Maybe these all wish they could get the private equity buyers back in the sector.  If only they could still borrow.

These CEO’s new year’s resolutions are all the same: "In 2008 I want to keep my stock off the 52-week low lists."

Jon C. Ogg
December 28, 2007

Top 10 Pre-Market Analyst Calls (GTOP, HAS, MAT, ITRI, MVL, RIMM, RAD, SGP)

If analysts were cowboys they’d say, "It’s getting pretty darn thin out there on the research front."  Here are the few analyst calls we are looking at today ahead of what most of Wall Street and Main Street will be treating as a 4 or 5 day weekend:

  • Genitope (NASDAQ: GTOP) downgraded to Underperform from Sector Perform at RBC.
  • Hasbro (NYSE:HAS) and Mattel (NYSE:MAT) both started as Hold at Citigroup.
  • Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI) raised to Outperform from sector Perform at RBC.
  • Marvel Enterprises (NYSE: MVL) started as Sell at Citigroup.
  • Research in Motion (NASDAQ:RIMM) raised to Outperform from Peer Perform at Bear Stearns; Goldman Sachs raised estimates.
  • Rite Aid (NYSE: RAD) raised to Buy from Neutral at UBS.
  • Schering-Plough (NYSE: SGP) raised to Overweight from Equal Weight at Lehman Brothers.

Yep, that’s right.  It is really only the TOP EIGHT RESEARCH CALLS today.

Jon C. Ogg
December 21, 2007

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Top 10 Pre-Market Analyst Calls (ANDE, ADSK, CCL, RCL, KO, PEP, HAS, MAT, OVTI, ORCL, TGT)

There are many other impacting analyst calls today, but these are the top calls that 24/7 Wall St. is focusing on:

  • The Andersons (ANDE) raised to Buy at Banc of America.
  • Autodesk (ADSK) raised to Buy at Jefferies.
  • Carnival Cruises (CCL) and Royal Caribbean (RCL) both started as Outperform at Wachovia.
  • Coca-Cola (KO) and Pepsico (PEP) both started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.
  • Hasbro (HAS) and Mattel (MAT) both started as Outperform at Wachovia.
  • OmniVision (OVTI) and Oracle (ORCL) both raised to Outperform at CIBC.
  • Target (TGT) cut to Neutral from Buy at Merrill Lynch.

Jon C. Ogg
November 14, 2007

Jon Ogg produces the 24/7 Wall St. Special Situation Investing Newsletter; he does not own securities in the companies he covers.

Top 10 Pre-Market Analyst Calls (BHI, HAL, FNM, FRE, INTC, MAT, MSFT, ORCL, MIR, NOVL, FTO, TSO, VLO)

These are not the only impacting analyst calls in the land of upgrades & downgrades, but these are the top ten analyst calls 24/7 Wall St. is looking at today:

  • Baker Hughes (BHI) & Halliburton (HAL) raised to Outperform at Bernstein.
  • Fannie Mae (FNM) & Freddie Mac (FRE) cut to Equal Weight at Lehman.
  • Frontier Oil (FTO), Tesoro (TSO) & Valero (VLO) estimates lowered at Goldman Sachs.
  • Intel (INTC) added to Goldman Sachs conviction Buy List, to replace the Long SNDK, Short AMAT pairs trade.
  • Mattel (MAT) raised to Overweight at J.P.Morgan.
  • Microsoft (MSFT) cut to Neutral from Buy at Merrill Lynch.
  • Mirant (MIR) raised to Overweight at Lehman.
  • Novell (NOVL) raised to Buy at UBS.
  • Oracle (ORCL) cut to Neutral from Buy at Merrill Lynch.

Jon C. Ogg
November 12, 2007

“Made In China ” Gets A Lot Worse, Cheap Gets Expensive

"More than four million Chinese-made toys sold in the U.S. as Aqua Dots are being recalled after reports that children became seriously ill after swallowing beads containing a chemical that causes a reaction in the body that mimics a date-rape drug’s effect," according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.

The toy’s manufacturer, Moose Enterprise, of Melbourne, Australia, yesterday said the problem had been traced to a Chinese factory.

Most major retailers like Wal-Mart (WMT) and toy companies like Mattel (MAT) obviously hoped that these problems were behind them Bad press only takes consumers back to other incidents when "China made" toys had problems. Large US manufactures and retaiilers cannot do without Chinese goods. The margins on the stuff are just too good.

But, cheap gets expensive. The entire American toy chain is now facing a holiday with little children waiting for toys they may never get. Their parents are too worried about their safety.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Media Digest 11/5/2007 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Barron’s

According to Reuters, Chuck Prince stepped down at CEO of Citigroup (C) and the bank indicated it may have to write off as much as another $11 billion.

Reuters writes that shares of PetroChina (PTR) doubled on its IPO debut which raised $9 billion.

Reuters reports that News Corp’s (NWS) MySpace launched a new targeted advertising program.

The Wall Street Journal writes that Kraft (KFT) is about to sell its Post cereals division for $2.8 billion.

The Wall Street Journal writes that Yahoo! (YHOO) has launched a social networking service.

The Wall Street Journal writes that Wal-Mart (WMT) and a former marketing executive with the firm have dropped lawsuits against one another.

The Wall Street Journal writes that Eli Lilly (LLY) has introduced a new blood thinner which can cause excessive bleeding.

The Wall Street Journal writes that the new Google (GOOG) phone may allow consumers to do easily on their phones what they now do on the web.

The New York Times writes that RIM (RIMM) is launching a wireless service for small to mid-sized firms.

The New York Times writes that Ford (F) and the UAW will now have to sell their new agreement to the union’s members.

The FT writes that PetroChina passed Exxon (XOM) as the world’s largest company by market cap.

Barron’s writes that shares in Mattel (MAT) could rise now that its recall issues are becoming a thing of the past.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Coca-Cola (KO) Shown Disrespect For Desani Water

Consumers International give out annual prizes for the world’s worst products. Perhaps someone from Coca-Cola (KO) showed up a the award dinner to collect its prize.

According to the AFP news agency, one award went to drinks giant Coca-Cola for pushing marketing "into the realms of the ridiculous" in the United States and South America with its Desani bottled warter which is sourced from the same reservoirs as local tap water.

Kellogg’s (K) did equally well. "Kellogg’s are one of a number of international food companies that make money by selling products high in fat, sugar and/or salt," Consumers International said.

And, we can’t forget Chinese toys. Toymaker Mattel (MAT) was also named over the global recall of more than 19 million products made in China because of high lead levels and small magnets.

Let’s hope they display the awards in their HQ lobbies with pride.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Gap’s (GPS) PR Problem

One of Gap’s (GPS) factories in India is employing children as young as 10 years-old.

According to MarketWatch, "In a statement released later Sunday, Gap said it was only informed of the sweatshop earlier this week, and "immediately launched" an investigation."

What is troubling, of course, is that Gap was not aware of the problem itself. The company made another statement to try to blunt the impact of the news: "We have called an urgent meeting with our suppliers in the region to reinforce our policies."

The problem is not unlike the China lead-painted toy issue and the damage that it did to Mattel (MAT). US companies are willing to turn to companies like India and China for cheap labor, but they are not willing to spend the money and resources to protect the workers in these venues or, in some cases, their own customers.

As more and more US firms come under the harsh spotlight that will be placed on their overseas manufacturing practices, the realization of these problems, and the backlash, is almost certain to grow.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Insider Trading At Mattel (MAT)?

It looks like insider trading is becoming a big issue with state and city pension funds. North Carolina has suggested charges against the head of Countrywide Financial (CFC)  And now a city pension fund in Michigan says that Mattel (MAT) kept information about toy recalls from its shareholders. That would have kept the stock price up for a period.

According to CNN Money "a lawsuit, filed in Delaware’s Court of Chancery, accuses three current members and one former member of Mattel’s board of directors of engaging in illegal insider trading by dumping more than $33 million in stock before the company’s massive toy recalls this summer."

It makes for good headlines, but is there anything beyond that? It is unlikely the four members of a big company board got management to keep the recalls a secret. The odds in Las Vegas have to be at least 10,000 to 1 against that.

But, the second part of the charge may have some teeth. Mattel was slow in getting the news about recalls out. "In addition to exposing the company to … increased litigation and fines, defendants’ illegal actions have had a crippling impact on the company’s stock price," the lawsuit states.

If Mattel had been very prompt in getting out information out about the recalls, shareholders would have little recourse. But, Mattel was not speedy.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Media Digest 10/11/2007 Reuters,WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Barron’s

According to Reuters, several retailers cut holiday forecasts and the economy slows.

Reuters writes that Chrysler has reached an accord with the UAW.

Reuters reports that Boeing (BA) has delayed delivery of its Dreamliner 787.

Reuters reports that Sony Ericsson topped its forecasts but average handset prices were down.

The Wall Street Journal writes that Madonna is close to leaving Warner Music (WMG) for a $120 million deal with Live Nation.

The Wall Street Journal writes that cable companies are trying to catch up with satellite TV providers on the number of HDTV channels that they can offer.

The Wall Street Journal reports that the FDA approved a drug-coated stent from Medtronic (MDT)

The New York Times writes the SEC. has been asked to investigate stock sales by Angelo R. Mozilo, Countrywide’s (CFC) chief executive

The FT writes that Morgan Stanley (MS) and Goldman Sachs (GS) have had to write down more debt due to problems in the mortgage market.

The FT writes that GE (GE) will decide the fate of NBC after the Olympics.

Barron’s writes that Merrill Lynch upgraded its price target on Google (GOOG) to $740.

CNN Money writes that Mattel (MAT) directors have been sued for insider trading.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Stranger Than Fiction Story Of The Day: Chinese Reject US Sardines

The Chinese government has rejected 47 tons of  US sardines according to China’s official Xinhua News Agency. The little fish were shipped through Japan, and, according to the communists were "infected with disease-inducing bacteria," according to The Associated Press.

The report said sample inspections showed the sardines were infected with listeria monocytogens, a bacteria that can lead to vomiting, fever and blood poisoning, the AP added.

The ships bringing in the sardines were loaded with lead-painted toys and are heading back to the US destined for Mattel’s (MAT) headquarters in El Segundo, CA

Douglas A. McIntyre