MATTEL'S SALES SURGE 33 PERCENT.Byline: Candice Choi Staff Writer Mattel enjoyed a 33 percent spike in year-end sales that was fueled by favorable currency rates and a one-time tax credit, the company reported Monday. Fourth-quarter sales rose to $284 million, up from $214 million in the same period last year. A $65 million tax benefit was the result of a settlement with the IRS An abbreviation for the Internal Revenue Service, a federal agency charged with the responsibility of administering and enforcing internal revenue laws. regarding the toy maker's federal income tax returns from 1998 to 2001. Despite the year-end gains, U.S. gross sales Gross Sales A measure of overall sales that isn't adjusted for customer discounts or returns, calculated simply by adding all sales invoices, and not including operating expenses, cost of goods sold, payment of taxes, or any other charge. remained flat for the year as the El Segundo El Segundo (ĕl sēgŭn`dō), industrial city (1990 pop. 15,223), Los Angeles co., S Calif., on Santa Monica Bay; inc. 1917. Its products include navigation and computer systems, aircraft parts, office machines, telephone apparatus, and company struggles to refresh the image of its iconic Barbie doll Barbie doll popular dress-up doll; extremely conventional and feminine. [Am. Hist.: Sann, 179] See : Fads . As the toy industry continues to flag, Mattel Chairman and Chief Executive Robert Eckert said in a conference call that the company will focus on giving Barbie a fresher image and developing its growing learning toys segment. The Barbie brand is ``in transition'' and trying to regain relevance with girls, Eckert said. Barbie is already gaining momentum and regaining market share; the doll outsold out·sold v. Past tense and past participle of outsell. the competition by a three-to-one ratio in the fourth quarter, compared with two-to-one in the past, he said. Despite all the ``propaganda and hoopla hoop·la n. Informal 1. a. Boisterous, jovial commotion or excitement. b. Extravagant publicity: The new sedan was introduced to the public with much hoopla. 2. ,'' Eckert said, Barbie is still the best-selling toy in the country. Barbie sales were down 8 percent worldwide for the year while other segments, such as Fisher-Price learning toys, enjoyed a 9 percent growth. Mattel's strategy for its Fisher-Price learning toys is not to rely on a single product, but to introduce a platform of new products, such as the Laugh and Learn for infants. Mattel's international sales rose 7 percent in 2004, but beneficial currency exchanges accounted for about 5 percentage points of that growth. Global gross sales for Hot Wheels Hot Wheels is a brand of die cast toy car, introduced by American toymaker Mattel in 1968. It was the primary competitor of Johnny Lightning and Matchbox until 1996, when Mattel acquired rights to the Matchbox brand from Tyco. were up 7 percent and for American Girl American Girl, may refer to:
For the fourth quarter, U.S. sales were up 10 percent while international sales were up 3 percent. Core brands such as Hot Wheels were up 8 percent, while Fisher-Price and American Girl were also up 7 percent. ``In the end, the holiday season was OK; not great, not bad,'' Eckert said. Year-end sales were also buoyed by shoppers who are waiting longer to buy holiday gifts, he said. That's resulted in profits being shifted from the third quarter to the fourth quarter. The company's performance was solid considering that sales were down 5 percent in the toy industry in 2004, Eckert said. The year ahead won't be much different from the one the toy company just finished, Eckert said. ``We expect it to be challenging.'' Candice Choi, (818) 713-3634 candice.choi(at)dailynews.com |
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