MATTEL PROFIT UP DESPITE BARBIE BLUES L.A. AMERICAN GIRL STORE HOLDS PROMISE.Byline: JULIA M. SCOTT Staff Writer 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 -- Toy maker Mattel Inc. saw increased earnings thanks to international sales and tax breaks, while sales of Barbie dolls remained soft. A bright spot in the future of the world's largest toy maker is the new American Girl American Girl, may refer to:
For the second quarter, Mattel earned $37.4 million, or 10 cents per share Cents per share The amount of a mutual fund's dividend or capital gains distributions that a shareholder will receive for each share owned. , up from last year's loss of $94 million, or 23 cents per share. The report sent Mattel's stock up $1.72 Monday, an 11 percent boost, to close at $17.60. ``We saw a little bit of an uptick compared to the first quarter but really, if you exclude the L.A. store, the business isn't doing as well as we'd like,'' Mattel Chairman and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. Robert A. Eckert said. International 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. for the El Segundo-based company ballooned 12 percent compared with at-home increases of 5 percent. Company officers credited the overall upswing in sales to the popularity of toys associated with the summer blockbusters ``Cars'' and ``Superman Returns.'' Officials said ``Cars'' toys were in demand from boys and girls boys and girls mercurialisannua. , and hinted that the playthings could top many wish lists during the upcoming holiday season. Sales were up 10 percent for Fisher-Price. A surge in American Girl sales prompted Eckert to call the brand a ``hot ticket'' during a conference call with analysts Monday. Indeed, since opening in April, the Los Angeles American Girl store has served 23,000 meals, hosted some 1,000 birthday parties, and seen more than 200,000 customers walk through its doors, Eckert said. But sales of 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. dropped 7 percent. And though Barbie accessories moved, the overall brand suffered a 1 percent decline. Stabilizing the Barbie brand ``goes a long way toward improving our operating performance,'' Eckert said. But the company offered no specifics during its call. Mattel's overall performance was aided by new tax laws, according to CFO See Chief Financial Officer. Kevin Farr. ``We expect the Tax Act to lower our tax provision by approximately three to four percentage points, resulting in an effective tax rate of 23 (percent) to 24 percent in 2006,'' Farr said. The company's earnings encouraged analysts, who tempered the good news with reminders that Mattel's recent progress has been unstable. ``In a nutshell, we believe this was a solid quarter for Mattel,'' wrote Felicia Cantor Hendrix, an analyst at Lehman Brothers, in a research note according to the Web site SmartMoney.com. ``At this point, we need to determine whether results like this (i.e. two sequential quarters of domestic Barbie increase) are sustainable or not.'' julia.scott(at)dailynews.com (818) 713-3736 CAPTION(S): 2 photos Photo: (1 -- color) Barbie dolls are stacked on a shelf at Gregory's toy store in Encino. Mattel Inc. said global sales of its core Barbie and Hot Wheels brands slipped. (2 -- color) Janet Unitan and her 19-month-old daughter, Jules, look at Barbie dolls at Gregory's toy store in Encino on Monday. Mattel Inc., the world's largest toy maker, said it swung to a second-quarter profit partly due to lower tax expenses. Nick Ut/Associated Press |
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