Hasbro first quarter profits off 47%

[MIB41]

Wow. Hasbro took a pretty big hit during the first quarter of 2009, but it was in line with analyst projections. Interestingly, Star Wars toys remained the strong seller while Transformers were lackluster. Perplexing considering the former film series is, for the moment, retired, while the later is getting ready for a sequel release this summer.

Hasbro 1st-quarter profit falls 47 percent - Yahoo! Finance

[BlackKnight]

Transformers are lackluster, because they really have no new product so far this Yr. I know this because I buy them for my Son..., & The last new ones I scored for him,.. were right before X-mas. They are Holding out for the New Movie, ... & Probably gonna release a bunch of stuff in May,.. that will give them close to the Top seller for Hasbro this Yr.

Star Wars has Released a Slew of new Product in the New Yr so far...

G.I.JOE ... I know the 3&4 inch haven't released new Product,.. Except for a couple of 2 Packs...

The Marvel 3 & 3/4 inch figures Fly off the Shelves up here,.. Not so much for the Cartoon Series, nore the Wolverine figures yet... Except DeadPool & Gambit.

That's pretty much all I follow from Hasbro.
I know alot of Kids are into all their Nurf stuff too.
I just think you have to expect poor sales , when you are Not releasing new Product, Stores up here , when you go have the same stuff, & when they get new stuff, it's the same old stuff & then sits on the shelf.

[csxernie]

i hate when they use that "projecteed earnings".the profits could be in the black but not up to what was projected.

[ctc]

>i hate when they use that "projecteed earnings".

Me too; 'cos it doesn't represent anything REAL. But folks treat it like it does....

I think one of the big problems with toys these days is a lack of focus from the companies. There seems to be more of a "toys as toys" attitude' no doubt thanks to some kids marketing tie-ins over the last few years.... but there's still a lot of "toys as collectibles" thinking. Often within the same lines! Which is a stupid idea. Kids don't want to search endlessly and pay a huge price for a "collectible" figure they're gonna play with 'til it breaks. And I think a lot of collectors are burning out 'cos there are SO MANY figures coming out. And since everybody's putting two away they're not gonna have any monetary value at all.

And as far as both groups are concerned, there's way too much rehashing. Slightly different versions of each character, focussing on the popular ones.

>Perplexing considering the former film series is, for the moment, retired, while the later is getting ready for a sequel release this summer.

That is kinda weird; but maybe people aren't as into the Transformers as they used to be? The old crowd maybe; but they'd have limited interest in the newer stuff. And I could see kids not being too impressed with the Transformers considering how many BETTER Japanese giant robots are readily accessable.

Don C.

[thunderbolt]

guessing Indaina Jones hurt them a bunch.

[IRON37]

yeah indiana jones figures didnt seem to sell very well here either, besides the lego version. As for the 3 3/4 in. marvel figures, i didnt even know they existed until i looked on the internet. Theyre next to impossible to get ahold of here. Almost the same for most of the wolverine origins figures. Nerf seems to do well for them. And transformers might start to pick up again with the new movie coming out soon.

[samurainoir]

I'd imagine that Hasbro has been focusing on their adult collectors (25th line and GI Joe Resolute) and is holding back for the one-two punch of the inevitable GI Joe Movie and Transformers Sequel. They have to pace these things 'cause they don't want audience/buyer fatigue to hit before the crest of the film launches.

As for Star Wars, keep in mind they have the Clone Wars TV series to keep both the kids and collectors going. New media incarnations help freshen up the line.

[ctc]

>is holding back for the one-two punch of the inevitable GI Joe Movie and Transformers Sequel

Y'know.... it's an interesting thing.... Since the turnaround rate for movies these days is so fast (with a popular film only being in theaters a month or two) do the films make as much of an impact as they used to?

>New media incarnations help freshen up the line

Yeah, but the Transformers have a series running now too. Although I think they're hampered by the series being a redo of the original story, whereas the Clone Wars show is a direct part of the continuity. It even fills in the blanks between the second and third of the new movies.

Don C.

[Gorn Captain]

Let's face it: kids these days don't go for action figures anymore.
They start out with a ball and a toy truck.
They might go through a very short GI Joe period.
Then they want cell phones, computers, Ipods.
Pretty soon, they'll be expecting Mom and dad to buy them a car. A new car, of course.
Then they'll probably pressure their parents into helping them buy a fancy house.

Personally, I have been in the GI Joe periode from 1975 until now, skipping all others.
People like us are singlehandedly saving the action figure industry.
Hasbro should be buying us cars, in gratitude....

PS: if you make figures where Cate Blanchett looks like a guy, and ugly guy even, don't expect any big sales. Just a hint, Hasbro.....