A tale of two toymakers: Mattel craters, while Hasbro's digital pivot delivers

By Aishwarya Venugopal

Feb 11 (Reuters) - Mattel and Hasbro some delivered disappointing forecasts for 2026. But Hasbro shares roseate arsenic overmuch arsenic 9% connected Tuesday connected the spot of its integer gaming business, and Mattel banal sank 30% premarket connected ‌Wednesday and was acceptable for its worst intraday plunge successful implicit 4 decades.

The contrasting reactions underscore a widening strategical spread betwixt the ‌two artifact giants.

While some are grappling with brushed request for accepted toys, Hasbro's occurrence successful integer gaming has fundamentally altered its hazard profile, turning a bleak forecast into ​a insignificant blip. For Mattel, the aforesaid macroeconomic informing was capable to nonstop its shares sharply lower.

"Mattel is successful the aboriginal stages of an concern akin to Hasbro's concern successful gaming implicit 7 years ago," D.A. Davidson expert Keegan Cox said.

Investors successful Mattel, the shaper of the iconic Barbie dolls and Hot Wheels toys, were disquieted astir the company's vulnerability to the weakening artifact marketplace and the increasing hazard of having to clasp down inventory ‌amid uncertain retailer orders.

"December gross billings successful the ⁠U.S. ended up increasing little than expected," Mattel said, implying that determination were less caller orders from retailers during the cardinal vacation buying period.

TWO PATHS, ONE FALLOUT

Mattel makes astir of its gross by selling toys: Hot ⁠Wheels cars and trucks, toddler playsets nether its Fisher-Price brand, dolls, and enactment figures with licenses from companies specified arsenic Pixar and Warner Bros Discovery.

Consumers, however, are buying less classical toys and spending much connected tabletop and integer games tied to deed online shows and films.

Mattel signaled connected Tuesday that it was ​pushing ​into the integer gaming market, arsenic it announced its program to get the ​remaining 50% of a associated task with China's NetEase. ‌But the initiatives are inactive successful the aboriginal stages and besides pressuring margins.

In contrast, Hasbro reported an 86% leap successful its Wizards of the Coast and Digital Gaming conception gross successful the December quarter, portion its operating borderline grew to 45% from astir 24% a twelvemonth earlier.

Magic: The Gathering, the company's flagship trading‑card franchise, posted a 141% surge successful revenue.

"While investors person seen however accepted artifact IP tin successfully onshore itself into integer gaming, and the borderline accidental of that upside, Mattel's sizable concern successful integer gaming successful 2026 delays the net upside," UBS ‌analysts wrote successful a note.

Mattel connected Tuesday said it aims to put astir $110 cardinal ​in 2026, chiefly directed towards integer games, and astir $40 cardinal successful performance-based marketing.