Keep an eye on Mattel (MAT).
While the stock has priced in a good deal of success from blowout $155 million Barbie film sales, it could race even higher over the long-term.
For one, according to The New Yorker, the company has another 45 toy-related movies in development, including Barney, Hot Wheels, Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots, He-Man: Masters of the Universe, and more. That’s because “movie and content and digital gaming and extensions really give us the opportunity to broaden our reach, drive revenue, and monetize the brand as a franchise,” said Chief Operating Officer Richard Dickson in an earnings call.
Two, UBS analyst Arpiné Kocharyan expects Mattel to bring in about $130 million in Barbie royalties, which could boost Mattel’s bottom line.
Three, analysts at Stifel say the movie could bring in $400 million at the box office. Plus, the firm says, “Barbie is the first of several movie releases from Mattel Films, with a stated mission to be an IP-driven toy business, and thus we see a successful launch as driving greater confidence around this part of the company’s strategy,” as noted by Business Insider. Roth MKM also lifted its price target on MAT to $24 from $22, with a buy rating.
That could even bigger sales for the iconic Barbie dolls, too.
Even better, according to Fox Business, “In 2022, the most recent full fiscal year, Mattel reported the Barbie brand saw $1.49 billion in gross billings globally. That had been preceded by gross billings of $1.68 billion in 2021 and $1.35 billion in 2020, according to quarterly earnings reports.” With the help of the Barbie movie, sales could explode even higher.
“2023 in particular is going to be a legacy-making year particularly on the Barbie brand,” Mattel CEO Ynon Kreiz told Fox. “As we have all seen, this first-ever live action film has gotten incredible cultural conversation. From there, it is a catalyst to also drive meaningful extensions of the brand outside of the toy aisle as we’ve shared.”
But wait, there’s more.
According to BarbieMedia.com, “A Barbie Dream House is sold every two minutes and was first introduced in 1962. More than 100 dolls are sold every minute. The Barbie YouTube channel has over twenty million global subscribers and 23 billion minutes of content watched, making Barbie the #1 girls’ brand on YouTube. Barbie Apps average more than 7 million monthly active users.”
MAT last traded at $21.61 – up about 2% on the day.
