Hasbro Profit Falls 4% in 3Q

Hasbro Inc , the No. 2 U.S. toy company, posted a third-quarter profit that topped Wall Street expectations but sales fell short of estimates, hurt by a drop in revenue at its boys and preschool product lines.

Sales at its boys category, which includes toys such as Transformers, fell 12% to $471.1 million, while sales of preschool products fell 5% to $206 million.

Hasbro, whose brands also include Monopoly, G.I. Joe, Nerf and Mr. Potato Head, has been working with its U.S. retail partners to better manage inventories this year.

The company has been trying to shift toy deliveries closer to peak demand periods.

Last week, larger rival Mattel Inc reported a higher-than-expected quarterly profit, helped by price increases and cost controls. The maker of Barbie dolls and Hot Wheels cars said it was well-positioned for the holidays.

Hasbro's net profit fell to $164.9 million, or $1.24 per share, from $171.0 million, or $1.27 per share, a year earlier.

Sales fell 2% to $1.35 billion.

Analysts on average expected a profit of $1.20 per share, excluding items, on revenue of $1.38 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Hasbro shares closed at $39.05 on Friday on the Nasdaq.