One of the year’s best “gaming” stocks continues to win by following an old-school approach.
As the big videogame companies struggle with changing consumer preferences, Hasbro Inc.
HAS, +9.95%
is riding a wave of enthusiasm for tabletop games. The company exceeded expectations for the second-straight quarter on Tuesday, citing strong performances from franchises like Magic: The Gathering, Dungeons and Dragons and Monopoly.
New “retro” Magic: The Gathering releases drove an 11% increase in new-player growth and prompted some fans to flock to digital versions of the title as well, Hasbro said. Magic helped lift Hasbro’s franchise-brands revenue by 14%, marking the unit’s biggest quarterly increase since the company changed up its reporting segments in 2017.
Though tabletop games were the high point for Hasbro, the company wants to leverage the momentum through digital tie-ins. Like the major videogame companies, it sees potential in Magic’s competitive-gaming popularity and has plans for an “expanded event schedule” of both digital and tabletop competitions that could boost player engagement and awareness. A Netflix Inc.
NFLX, -1.07%
series based on the Magic franchise is also in the works.
With a strong Tuesday rally, Hasbro shares are up more than 40% so far this year and continue to outperform once-hot gaming names like Take-Two Interactive Software Inc.
TTWO, +1.24%
Electronic Arts Inc.
EA, +0.09%
and Activision Blizzard Inc.
ATVI, +0.77%
Even Microsoft Corp.
MSFT, +0.62%
which crushed its latest quarter, predicts continuing struggles in its gaming business.
• Two of the biggest bounceback stocks of 2019, Snap Inc.
SNAP, +4.81%
and Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc.
CMG, -0.39%
, continued to show strength after earnings reports Tuesday afternoon. Snap stock jumped by double-digit percentages in late trading after its quarterly report smashed expectations for revenue and active users, while Chipotle increased its financial forecast for the year to send shares about 4% higher.
• United Technologies Corp.
UTX, +1.50%
raised its forecast for the full year, even as it contends with fallout from the Boeing Co. 737 Max groundings and activist criticism of the company’s pending deal for Raytheon Co.
RTN, +0.42%
Chief Executive Gregory Hayes said that while “it’s bad news that the 737 Max isn’t flying,” United Technologies’ aftermarket business benefits as airlines look to service the older planes they must operate instead.
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Of the three Dow Jones Industrial Average
DJIA, +0.65%
components that reported earnings Tuesday morning, United Technologies and Coca-Cola Co.
KO, +6.07%
shares gained, while Travelers Cos. Inc.
TRV, -1.48%
shares fell.
• Visa Inc.
V, +0.18%
was the fourth and final Dow component to report Tuesday afternoon, and shares dropped slightly in after-hours trading despite an earnings beat and raised outlook.
• Texas Instruments Inc.
TXN, +1.60%
kicked off the quarter’s semiconductor earnings with an optimistic outlook ahead of reports from chip companies Intel Corp.
INTC, +0.78%
and Xilinx Inc.
XLNX, +2.46%
later in the week.
