Hasbro, Inc. (HAS) to Benefit from Merchandising Relationship with Disney (DIS) Ahead of Major 2014, 2015 Movie Releases

November 14, 2013

Hasbro, Inc. (HAS) is in front of a significant pipeline of movie content for 2014 and 2015, and with its strategic merchandising relationship with The Walt Disney Company (DIS) is expected to benefit considerably from the release of Marvel movies as well as the highly anticipated Star Wars, says Stephanie S. Wissink, Principal, Senior Research Analyst and Co-Director at Piper Jaffray & Co.

“We actually tend to bias toward the Hasbro model, which is start with the brand, invest in the brand and allow toys to just be one component of how that brand is actually consumed,” Wissink said. “We are in front of a very significant pipeline of movie content that they have the master licenses for in 2014, and one of those key properties is Transformer, which is actually a Hasbro-owned brand…They also have the license for Marvel, which would includes Spiderman, The Avengers, Captain America, and a new property called Guardians of the Galaxy also coming next year.”

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THIS INTERVIEW CLICK HERE.

Wissink is also looking forward to the monumental Star Wars release, in which Hasbro should benefit due to their strategic relationship with Disney, a company that has been highly successful at turning entertainment properties into global brands.

“The godfather of them all is ‘Star Wars,’ which in the entertainment business right now is the most anticipated movie in 2015…This is actually being projected to potentially be the largest-grossing movie in history, so it’s massive,” Wissink said. “It will be a global release, and Disney also bought Lucas this year, and if I know Disney well enough and working with our media team, Disney doesn’t just monetize movies when they are in theater. Disney turns entertainment properties into global, in some cases lifestyle, brands…it’s going to be a several hundred million dollar event.”