Hasbro revenue falls short as pandemic hits toymaker

Covid undermines bet on TV and movie production for accelerated growth

Monopoly game maker Hasbro fell short of first-quarter revenue estimates on Tuesday as Covid-19 forced delays hammered the toymaker's movie and TV production business.

The company in recent years has focused on entertainment production to power growth at a faster pace than traditional toy sales.

It bought Entertainment One, the firm behind Peppa Pig and The Walking Dead TV series, in 2019 in a bid to quickly expand its entertainment properties, but production setbacks and the closure of cinemas led to a 34 per cent fall in revenue at TV and film business.

The Monopoly maker’s net revenue rose 1 per cent to $1.11 billion in the three months to March 28th, but missed analysts’ estimates of $1.17 billion.

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Net earnings attributable to Hasbro was $116.2 million, or 84 US cents per share, compared to a loss of $69.7 million, or 51 cents per share, a year earlier. – Reuters