What is interesting is that whatever talks of a merger that we may have had are now evolved into a talk of a takeover which could possibly mean that the end goal would be less about keeping both brands, ala Takara Tomy, but instead absorbing Mattel as a part of Hasbro, like what they eventually did with Kenner before. For those curious, Mattel has a market value of about $5 billion, while Hasbro is worth about $11 billion, so more than double. Hasbro's stock has jumped slightly since the news. Below is a quote from the Wall Street Journal regarding these talks.
Hasbro Inc. has made a takeover offer for rival Mattel Inc., according to people familiar with the matter, a potential combination that would unite the two biggest U.S. toy makers and put Barbie and G.I. Joe under the same roof.
Hasbro’s approach to Mattel was made recently, one of the people said. The terms of any possible deal couldn’t be learned, and the approach may go nowhere.
To read more, you can find the article here. While you need a subscrition to read the full article, this CNBC article is free to read and is based on said Wall Street Journal article.
Let us know what you think can come of this potential takeover and what opportunities for cross branding you see.
