Monday Matchup
Hasbro Vs. Mattel
Davide Dukcevich, 12.15.03, 12:15 PM ET
Hasbro (nyse: HAS - news - people )
Year founded: 1923
Headquarters: Pawtucket, R.I.
First blockbuster toy: Mr. Potato Head, 1952
Best-selling toy of all time: Monopoly
Current toy brands: G.I. Joe, Transformers, Monopoly, Clue, Mr. Potato Head, Furby
Contenders for best-selling toy in 2003: VideoNow, Trivial Pursuit
Contenders for most popular toy this Christmas season: VideoNow, Trivial Pursuit, Beyblade, My Little Pony
2002 revenue: $2.8 billion
2002 earnings per share: $1.02
Price-to-earnings ratio (trailing twelve months): 21.73
Market cap: $3.45 billion
Number of employees: about 7,000
Year-to-date change in stock price: +71%
Ranking on Forbes 500s list of biggest U.S. companies: 797 (up from No. 808 in 2002)
Mattel (nyse: MAT - news - people )
Year founded: 1945
Headquarters: El Segundo, Calif.
First blockbuster toy: Barbie doll, 1959
Best-selling toy of all time: Barbie
Current toy brands: Barbie, Hot Wheels, Fisher-Price, American Girl, Matchbox, Magna Doodle, Little People
Contender for best-selling toy in 2003: Barbie in Swan Lake
Contenders for most popular toy this Christmas season: Hot Wheels, T-Wrecks feature track set
2002 revenue: $4.9 billion
2002 earnings per share: $1.10 per share
Price-to-earnings ratio (trailing 12 months): 16.83
Market cap: $8.32 billion
Number of employees: about 25,000
Year-to-date change in stock price: +1%
Ranking on Forbes 500s list of biggest U.S. companies: 254 (up from 294 in 2002)
NEW YORK - Shoppers won't be the only ones fighting it out in the aisles of Toys R Us (nyse: TOY - news - people ), Target (nyse: TGT - news - people ) and Wal-Mart Stores (nyse: WMT - news - people ) this holiday season. It's crunch time for the toy industry, too. The two biggest U.S. toymakers, Mattel (nyse: :MAT - news - people ) and Hasbro (nyse: :HAS - news - people ), each received about 35% of their total 2002 revenue in the fourth quarter.
This year, the two industry giants are pinning their hopes on brands that have surrounded Christmas trees for decades. Hasbro is offering the always-popular Trivial Pursuit and My Little Pony lines. Mattel's answer: Hot Wheels and Barbie. But there are plenty of new offerings as well, including Hasbro's high-tech personal video player, VideoNOW. Mattel's response is Power Touch, a line of early-learning electronic books.
forbes.com |
