Hasbro Profit Surges 83% In First Quarter

Toy maker Hasbro Inc. on Monday reported an 83% surge in first-quarter net profit, boosted by strong growth in the company's Nerf and Play-Doh units. The company said net profit rose to $48.8 million, or 38 cents a share, from $26.7 million, or 0.21 cents, in the year-ago quarter. Revenue rose 16% to $831.2 million from $713.5 million in the same quarter last year. Hasbro said revenue was hit by $28.6 million in negative foreign-exchange effects. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expected earnings of 24 cents a share on revenue of $779.2 million. "The strength of our results reflected the continued momentum in our business and strong execution from our global teams. We grew revenues, operating profit and earnings despite the continued negative impact from foreign exchange and challenging economic environments in some international markets," said Deborah Thomas, Hasbro's chief financial officer, in the earnings release.