Authentic Brands in talks to buy Mattel for over $20 a share
Hasbro shares rise quickly after the report, even though no offer has been made for the company
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Chart: MAT, one-minute prices, three sessions
UpdateThursday, October 1, 2026 at 2:17 PM ET
The discussed price values Mattel at roughly $6 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Authentic Brands Group is discussing a takeover of Mattel at more than $20 a share, the Wall Street Journal reported. Mattel shares jumped on the news.
Hasbro shares also moved higher within minutes of the report, even though the discussions involve only Mattel. No bid for Hasbro has been reported.
Authentic Brands built its business by licensing out apparel and entertainment names rather than running toy companies directly. The approach to Mattel is the first concrete sign of outside interest in the company since activist pressure and management turnover put its standalone strategy under scrutiny.
The story lands amid a run of deal-driven headlines across unrelated sectors this fall, from activist pressure on Cooper Cos. to MGM's weighing a bid for People Incorporated and Northern Star's fending off Gold Fields. Hasbro's quick move suggests traders are pricing in the chance that a deal for one toy maker invites scrutiny of the other, rather than treating the Authentic Brands approach as an isolated event. A price above $20 a share gives Mattel's board, and any rival bidders, a concrete number to beat. Whether Hasbro becomes an actual target or just a read-through trade depends on what, if anything, surfaces next.