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Thursday, Mar 28, 2024
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Mattel Earnings: Playtime Over

Mattel Inc.’s interim chief executive told investors on Friday the toymaker will make needed changes “with a heightened sense of urgency” as the company reported weak sales and earnings for the final quarter of last year. The company’s net income was only $150 million (44 cents a share), a 60 percent drop from $369 million ($1.07 a share) in the same period a year earlier. Sales of $1.99 billion for the quarter were down 6 percent from the same period last year. “We are disappointed with our results,” said CEO Christopher Sinclair, who was only appointed to the position this week. “Over the next few months, I will be focused on working with the management team to thoroughly evaluate the business in order to identify how we can improve our top-line performance and drive profitability.” Mattel is a key competitor of MGA Entertainment in Van Nuys, the maker of the popular Bratz line of dolls. The two companies fought an extended and expensive legal battle over the dolls’ intellectual property rights, with MGA ultimately prevailing in 2013. For Mattel’s core brands, sales of Barbie fell 12 percent, Fisher-Price brand sales dropped 11 percent and American Girl sales fell 4 percent over the same period in 2013. Hot Wheels’ sales climbed 5 percent. For the full year, the company reported net income of $499 million ($1.45 a share), down 45 percent from 2013, when net income hit $904 million ($2.58 a share). Sales for the year slid 7 percent to $6 billion. Mattel’s Friday earnings were in line with preliminary figures reported Monday, the same day the board of directors replaced former chief executive Bryan Stockton with Sinclair, a longtime board member. After a slight climb earlier in the day, Mattel shares were flat at $26.90 at the close of trading on Friday.

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