How Mattel Beat Earnings
Mattel reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter financial results after the markets closed on Monday.
Mattel Inc. (NASDAQ: MAT) reported its fourth-quarter financial results after the markets closed on Monday. The company had $0.67 in earnings per share (EPS) on $2 billion in revenue. The consensus estimates from Thomson Reuters called for $0.60 in EPS on revenue of $1.92 billion. In the same period of the previous year, the company posted EPS of $0.49 in EPS and revenue of $1.99 billion.
In terms of the business segments, Barbie worldwide gross sales were up 8% in constant currency and 1% as reported. Fisher-Price worldwide gross sales were up 13% in constant currency and 8% as reported. Hot Wheels worldwide gross sales were up 28% in constant currency and 18% as reported.
For the first quarter, the board of directors declared a cash dividend of $0.38 per share, which is flat compared to the first quarter of 2015. Also the dividend will be payable on March 4, to stockholders of record on February 17.
On the books, the company had $892.8 million in cash and cash equivalents compared to $971.7 million in the same period from the previous year.
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Chris Sinclair, Mattel chairman and CEO, commented:
We are encouraged by our results in the quarter and for the year, which reflect solid progress on a number of important fronts. We achieved our goal of stabilizing the business, with improved gross sales both in the quarter and for the full year. In addition, we drove significant momentum across the majority of our core brands, most of which saw stronger retail sales and shipping, and we continued to make headway in key emerging markets like China and Russia. Overall, we are pleased with our performance at this stage of our turnaround.
Shares of Mattel closed Monday down 3% at $26.76, with a consensus analyst price target of $27.70 and a 52-week trading range of $19.45 to $30.44. Following the release of the earnings report, shares were up 6.6% at $28.52 in early trading indications Tuesday.
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Chris Lange is a financial and geopolitical writer with more than a decade of experience covering a myriad of topics. He has published thousands of articles for 24/7 Wall St., with past coverage focused heavily on stocks, IPOs, healthcare, defense, global affairs, and technology.
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