Investors' Greet Hasbro 2Q Results

Hasbro, Inc.

reported 25 percent growth in its net earnings for the second quarter driven by 10 percent increase in the top line. The company claimed that excluding foreign exchange impact, its top line growth would have been 12 percent. In any case, the results exceeded the Street expectations thus lifting the stock in the pre-market trading. Hasbro said that its net earnings were $52.1 million or $0.41 per share, up from $41.8 million or $0.33 a share in the year-ago quarter. Street analysts' estimated the company to deliver earnings of $0.39 a share. The company's top line also grew 10 percent to $878.9 million from $797.7 million in the previous year quarter. Street predicted the company to generate $858.97 million revenue. Its chairman, president and CEO, Brian Goldner, commented, "Hasbro's focus on building brands, telling great stories, and creating the best play experiences in toys, games, digital gaming and consumer products is driving strong consumer and retailer demand for our brands globally." He continued to add, "The excellent execution of our team continues to deliver revenue and earnings growth, while we are investing in elevating our talent and capabilities around our Brand Blueprint. Our initiatives for the second half of the year feature innovative offerings for Hasbro Franchise Brands and Partner Brands, including newly announced products such as FURBY CONNECT and SPEAK OUT, and support for upcoming major feature films, Lucasfilm's Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and DreamWorks' Trolls." Hasbro said that it paid $63.9 million as dividends to its shareholders in the second quarter 2016. Its next quarterly cash dividend of $0.51 per share is scheduled for August 15 to shareholders of record on August 1. The company disclosed that it bought back 270,611 shares at a total cost of $21.9 million and an average price of $81.00 per share. For the year-to-date period,, the Company bought back 745,611 shares at a total cost of $57.8 million and an average price of $77.44 per share. At the end of the second quarter, the company still has $421.5 million available in the current share repurchase program. In the pre-market trading, the stock traded more than one percent higher and the gains were restricted to 0.12 percent while writing this.