Hasbro, Inc. $HAS Shares Purchased by Aberdeen Group plc

Aberdeen Group plc raised its position in Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAS) by 187.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 23,161 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 15,095 shares during the period. Aberdeen Group plc’s holdings in Hasbro were worth $1,757,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of HAS. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hasbro by 4.7% in the third quarter. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. now owns 13,729 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,041,000 after buying an additional 622 shares in the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Hasbro in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $213,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in Hasbro by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 34,040 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,582,000 after purchasing an additional 1,934 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its holdings in shares of Hasbro by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 28,683 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,176,000 after purchasing an additional 1,553 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its position in shares of Hasbro by 21.3% in the third quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 31,748 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,408,000 after purchasing an additional 5,585 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.83% of the company’s stock.

Hasbro Stock Performance

Shares of HAS stock opened at $101.46 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.89, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.38. The firm has a market cap of $14.24 billion, a P/E ratio of -43.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.56. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $89.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $82.02. Hasbro, Inc. has a one year low of $49.00 and a one year high of $106.98.

Hasbro (NASDAQ:HAS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The company reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.52. Hasbro had a positive return on equity of 127.21% and a negative net margin of 6.86%.The company had revenue of $1.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.26 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.46 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 31.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Hasbro, Inc. will post 4.33 EPS for the current year.

Hasbro Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 18th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. Hasbro’s dividend payout ratio is presently -119.15%.

Insider Transactions at Hasbro

In other Hasbro news, CFO Gina M. Goetter sold 12,429 shares of Hasbro stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.46, for a total value of $1,285,904.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 68,221 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,058,144.66. The trade was a 15.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Christian P. Cocks sold 181,581 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.86, for a total transaction of $18,859,002.66. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 249,861 shares in the company, valued at $25,950,563.46. This trade represents a 42.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 216,931 shares of company stock valued at $22,535,763. Insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on HAS. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Hasbro from $97.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Hasbro from $88.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Hasbro from $103.00 to $119.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Hasbro from $95.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Hasbro from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $113.73.

About Hasbro

Hasbro, Inc is a global play and entertainment company, known for designing, manufacturing and marketing a diverse portfolio of toys, games and consumer products. Founded in 1923 as Hassenfeld Brothers and headquartered in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, the company has grown into one of the foremost names in the toy industry, with a presence in retail, digital and entertainment channels worldwide.

The company’s brand portfolio features iconic properties such as Monopoly, Play-Doh, Nerf, My Little Pony and Transformers.