What happened
Game maker Hasbro (HAS 0.20%) crushed earnings estimates in a third-quarter earnings report released this morning -- and investors are devastated.
Despite reporting $1.88 per share in adjusted profit, where Wall Street had expected only $1.62, and despite beating on sales ($1.8 billion), Hasbro stock is down a depressing 10% in 11 a.m. EDT trading. Why?
Image source: Getty Images.
So what
Well, for one thing, although Hasbro did in fact "beat" this morning, its quarter was not an unalloyed success.
Despite e-commerce sales surging 50% in the pandemic environment, overall sales declined 4% year over year. And when calculated according to generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), Hasbro's net profit didn't quite measure up to its headline pro forma number. GAAP earnings for the quarter were only $1.61 per share -- also a 4% decline.
Despite these disappointing numbers, CEO Brian Goldner called the results "great work" indicative of "continued growing consumer demand for Hasbro brands in most markets."
Now what
Digging deeper into the results, we see that Hasbro suffered declining sales internationally in general, and in entertainment and licensing, its new eOne subsidiary, TV and film, and emerging brands in particular. About the only things growing at Hasbro last quarter (aside from online sales instead of brick-and-mortar sales) were sales in the U.S. and Canada, in "franchise brands," and in gaming -- collaborative, quarantine-friendly games like Magic: The Gathering, Dungeons & Dragons, and Monopoly -- and even those sales gains were in the single digits.
Hasbro furthermore gave no earnings guidance in its report, although in a subsequent conference call, TheFly.com reports that Hasbro conceded it might revive sales growth in the fourth quarter. Even that might not be enough to fully satisfy Wall Street analysts, however, who will be looking for Hasbro to post an astounding 18% leap in sales.
Given the continued declines seen in Q3, investors can be forgiven for fearing that that might be a bit of a reach.
