The post-holiday hangover always makes for the year's smallest sales at toy maker Hasbro (NYSE:HAS), as it does for competitor and No. 1 toy maker Mattel (NYSE:MAT).
But Hasbro needs a bit more than aspirin this morning, with shares down 5%, despite a semi-solid earnings report that highlighted EPS of $0.03 per share, triple the penny per ticket produced in the prior-year period.
The trim is probably owed to the firm's flattish revenue numbers, which, on the surface, look like a 2.7% gain over last year's $461.8 million. But since the first quarter's $472 million includes $21 million owed only to currency fluctuations, skeptics are going to see a slip in sales. That's particularly unnerving when the overall retail climate has been so strong.
Toy sales in the U.S. -- the biggest portion of the company's revenue -- were down slightly, while $1 million in operating profit from the segment was only one-fifth of last year's. Overseas revenues dropped almost 9% in local currencies, contributing to a 60% increase in that segment's operating loss, which came to $10 million.
A 14% increase in game sales, especially trading card games and kids' board games, got credit for keeping earnings on target for the quarter.
Does the stumble mean it's time to head for the exits? Not by my reckoning. Sure, this Motley Fool Stock Advisor and Motley Fool Hidden Gems pick has had quite a run, trading just below $15 a share last May, and reaching a 52-week high of $23 earlier this month. After a climb like that, anything less than perfection is likely to knock the stock.
But the valuation still looks attractive, at an enterprise value-to-free cash flow ratio of below 10 (using today's EV and last year's FCF). That's less than half the overall market, and firms with classic products that spin off so much excess cash can provide decent returns despite slim growth.
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Fool contributor Seth Jayson is often whooped by his math teacher wife playing Hasbro's Jenga. He has no stake in any firm mentioned above. View his Fool profile here.
