Morgan Stanley Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Mattel (NASDAQ:MAT) Stock

Mattel (NASDAQ:MAT) had its price target upped by Morgan Stanley from $22.00 to $23.00 in a research note released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut Mattel from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Mattel from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $20.00 to $28.00 in a report on Wednesday. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Mattel from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Mattel from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $27.00 price objective on shares of Mattel in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $25.57.

Mattel Trading Up 0.2 %

NASDAQ:MAT opened at $21.48 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.43, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.76. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $18.56 and its 200 day moving average price is $18.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a current ratio of 2.45. Mattel has a 52 week low of $15.87 and a 52 week high of $21.88.

Mattel (NASDAQ:MAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.20 by $0.15. Mattel had a net margin of 10.24% and a return on equity of 25.39%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.29 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Mattel will post 1.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mattel

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MAT. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in Mattel by 584.3% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,485 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 1,268 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in Mattel during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mattel during the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. West Oak Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Mattel by 9,775.0% in the fourth quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 1,975 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 1,955 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mattel by 38.3% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,797 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 775 shares in the last quarter. 97.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Mattel

Mattel, Inc, a toy and family entertainment company, designs, manufactures, and markets toys and consumer products in North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates through North America, International, and American Girl segments. It offers dolls and accessories, as well as books, content, gaming, and lifestyle products for children under the Barbie, American Girl, Disney Princess and Disney Frozen, Monster High, and Polly Pocket brands; die-cast vehicles, tracks, playsets, and accessories for kids, adults, and collectors under the Hot Wheels, Hot Wheels Monster Trucks, Hot Wheels Mario Kart, Matchbox, and Cars brand names; and infant, toddler, and preschool products comprising content, toys, live events, and other consumer products under the Fisher-Price, Little People and Imaginext, and Thomas & Friends, and Power wheels brands.