UPDATE: Citigroup Reiterates Buy Rating, $37 PT for Mattel

In a company update issued earlier today, Citigroup Inc. reiterated its Buy rating and $37 price target for Mattel, Inc.

. Citigroup went on to say “We were surprised that the company was able to only miss by a penny despite a pretty big miss on shipments (reductions in retail inventory levels was a major reason for the sales miss this Q). This sets up Mattel well to beat the annual First Call numbers, assuming some of the margin expansion is sustainable and it can achieve sales growth in the low to mid single digit range during 2012.” Mattel, Inc. closed on Friday at $34.13.