I want to thank Tim for pointing out that Marvel Entertainment (NYSE: MVL) has been able to inspire profitable flicks, even if you -- somewhat ridiculously -- back out its more powerful franchises. Isn't that kind of like judging Hank Aaron's career slugging percentage without the homers?
Tim also conveniently begins the tracking process in 1998, a year after the smash hit Men in Black came out (and bypasses the smash sequel in 2002 entirely). Marvel acquired the property in 1994. Those two films raked in slightly more than a billion bucks globally during their theatrical runs.
Despite his cherry-picking -- or pit-picking -- Tim still lays out the groundwork for the kind of company that is smart to take control of many of its future productions. Barely break-even at the local multiplex with its collective duds? That's great. Tim never got into the gravy that Marvel stands to collect months later from DVD, soundtrack, and video game sales.
For example, VideoScan estimates that Marvel's Fantastic Four moved 2.4 million DVD units the day it hit the market in December. On the video game front, action titles are huge, and it's no surprise that both Electronic Arts (Nasdaq: ERTS) and Activision (Nasdaq: ATVI) have been putting out Marvel-licensed games.
As for Avi Arad's production deal, he served Marvel well in the past on the inside and will serve Marvel well on the outside. He will work for, and earn, those royalties.
Marvel has been one of David Gardner's best stock picks for Stock Advisor newsletter subscribers. I'm not suggesting that past performance is enough to rescue it from the slippery demise Tim proposes, but I think he's viewing this bold move to self-finance key properties like Captain America and Iron Man all wrong.
Marvel has always been about the marketable popularity of its characters. Going "whole hog" in this case is just its way of giving Marvel a chance at more great returns. If the company is right, it will make a lot more money off its future productions. If Marvel is wrong, it would have been wrong anyway, selling fewer comic books, Hulk Hands, and licensed movie deals.
Marvel is power, and with great power comes great responsibility. That's what Spidey would say. Get in on this powerful stock before the rest of the market discovers how powerful a responsible Marvel can be.
Marvel, Activision, and Electronic Arts have all been
Stock Advisor
recommendations.
Think you're done with the Duel? You're not! Go back and read the other three arguments, and then vote for a winner.
Longtime Fool contributor Rick Munarriz spent his youth reading Mad and Cracked instead of the traditional comic books, but he appreciates the flicks aplenty. He owns no shares of any company mentioned above. The Fool has adisclosure policy. He is also part of theRule Breakersnewsletter research team, seeking out tomorrow's ultimate growth stocks a day early.
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