Hasbro Quarterly Sales Up Thanks To Disney Princess, Trolls

Hasbro's quarterly revenue report, ending September 25, saw a sharp increase of 14.2%. That's a $1.68 billion revenue, beating analyst estimates by over 100 million dollars. The expectation may have been that Star Wars helped fly Hasbro to victory once more, but the toy release surrounding Rogue One: A Star Wars Story didn't hit until September 30, so revenue from that will go on the quarter 4 report. The increase made for the highest quarterly revenue and earnings in Hasbro company history.

Instead, it was an increase in sales of Disney Princess toys, Trolls dolls, and a resurgence of the Furby brand that drove the sales increase. Toys targeted at girls (Hasbro changed their wording to "targeted at" from "for" in recent years after a consumer-driven movement for more gender parity in toy sales) rose a staggering 56.7% in the third quarter (toys targeted at boys went up 2% and games went up 13% as well). Disney Princess, including the unstoppable juggernaut of Frozen sold well, and the new Trolls movie launchin in November saw those toys, originally created in 1959, get a drastic boost. Japanese-based sensation Yo-Kai Watch was also a strong contributor this quarter.

Hasbro's stocks went up over 3 percent to $78.75 a share in premarket trading on the back of the overperformance. That's a net income of $2.03 a share, which also beat analysts by 29 cents.

Hasbro should have a strong fourth quarter on the back of Star Wars toys, annual strong sellers for the company. While buzz on Rogue One isn't quite at the fever pitch that Star Wars: The Force Awakens was last year, the toys, accompanied by a Midnight release event, have continued to sell well. Last year's fourth quarter rose 13%.

Magic: The Gathering, Nerf, Play-Doh, and Transformers brands all saw growth, as well. The nine-month report year over year mimics the quarter three - up 14%. The only bad news is a negative impact from Foreign Exchange rates (with the drastic drop of the British Pound following the "Brexit" vote), dropping $2.8 million in Q3 and $49.1 million year-to-date. Digital entertainment and gaming grew 8% in the quarter.

The Holiday quarter includes new toys from Nerf, Transformers, Marvel Legends, My Little Pony, and the annual refresh of Hasbro's popular games, with new versions of Monopoly, Trivial Pursuit (including a new Star Wars-themed edition), and more. With the Rogue One release, Halloween, and the winter gift-giving holidays, Hasbro's success should continue.