|
Mattel's Stock Rise May Signal Barad's Departure
|
 Mattel Inc.'s shares surged nearly 14 percent Wednesday amid rumors that the toymaker's board of directors was holding an emergency meeting, possibly to discuss the departure of chief executive Jill Barad. Barad has been under fire in recent months for big losses at the company's newly acquired The Learning Company division, which has put pressure on sales and profits. That has angered investors, who have pushed down Mattel's stock by more than 60 percent from its high of $30.311/4 in April. The El Segundo, Calif.-based company did not return phone calls seeking comment whether a meeting was under way - if it existed at all. But speculation circulated on Wall Street and Internet chat rooms, pushing Mattel's stock up. Its shares rose $1.433/4 to $11.811/4 as of 5:15 p.m. on the New York Stock Exchange. Reports of an emergency gathering of the board comes as Mattel prepares to release its fourth-quarter and year-end earnings on Tuesday. It is also right before the American International Toy Fair in New York, where toymakers showcase their products for the coming year. Investors have been looking for any signs that the company might be taking steps to get its business back on track. For months, many have pushed for Barad to be ousted from her helm of the company. One of the biggest problems in the last year has come from Mattel's $3.6 billion purchase of The Learning Company, which it acquired in May as part of an effort to tap the growing market for interactive toys. The Learning Company's software titles include Carmen Sandiego, Riven and Myst. That deal was supposed to immediately add $50 million annually to Mattel's bottom line. Instead the company lost $105 million in the third quarter due to a number of problems with the software division, including a loss of a key distribution deal and an unexpected high return of unsold products from retailers. Now, there are worries that the troubles with The Learning Company may not be over. Toy industry analysts, who declined to be named, said Wednesday that there may be more losses to report because of the troubles with the software division. That's not the only thing that has gone wrong at Mattel. The company has lot a number of top executives over the past year. In addition, Mattel hasn't produced a must-have toy that's been the talk of the nation in the past few years. Barad is one of four women CEOs at a Fortune 500 company. Andrea Jung is CEO of Avon; Carleton S. Fiorina holds the top spot at Hewlett-Packard and Marion D. Sandler leads Golden West Financial. [Updated 02/03/2000]
  
|
