A stock selloff by Mattel executives in the wake of the blockbuster “Barbie” film has raised eyebrows and “red flags” among some Wall Street watchers.
The stock sales, while perfectly legal experts stressed, may mean Mattel’s brass believe the pink tide that lifted the company’s value has crested, according to VerityData, an investment research firm that tracks insider buying, selling and buyback activity.
When we see insiders selling aggressively into the the rise of the stock it raises red flags about the sustainability of this stocks valuation, Ben Silverman, director of research for VerityData, told The Post.
Mattel’s stock is up about 21% this year, fueled by the buzz around “Barbie,” which was released July 21 and has since grossed more than $1 billion.
Five senior Mattel executive sold 275,800 shares over the past 10 days according to government filings. The average sale price of $21.21 netted them about $4.2 million, according to VerityData.
The trades stand out, Silverman said, because Mattel insiders rarely sell their shares.
Since July 31, Mattel officers have dumped more shares than the 248,000 sold by insiders in the previous 9.5 years, Silverman said.
Three of the Mattel executives were first-time sellers, including head of human resources, Amanda Thompson, who joined the company in 2017, Jonathan Anschell, who has been the companys legal counsel since 2021 and Yoon Hugh, the companys controller since 2019, VerityData found.
The others include Steve Totzke, president and chief commercial officer, and Roberto Isaias, Mattel’s chief supply chain officer, according to the firm.
All the trades were made days after the company reported its financial results on July 26, avoiding any legal impropriety but not scrutiny.
Seeing five executives trading all at once, raises questions, said Thomas Gorman, a former SEC official and current partner in law firm Dorsey & Whitney. You dont usually see that kind of a pattern coming out of a sophisticated company like Mattel.
The selloff could suggests that the pop in Mattels stock may not be sustainable, according to VerityData.
We are telling our clients that insiders are sending a message that the stock is over-valued, Silverman said.
Even before the movie was released, Wall Street experts questioned Barbie’s halo effect on the Segundo, Calif-based toy giant.
“We worry somewhat about Mattel’s long-term management of Barbie’s positioning,” wrote DA Davidson analyst Linda Bolton Weiser in a July 17 note, recalling a period 10 years ago when moms were “anti-Barbie.”
The trades by the insiders also come after longtime Mattel chief operating officer Richard Dickson known as the Barbie whisperer quit the company to take over struggling retailer Gap.
Now, in social media posts and an appearance on boyfriend Travis Kelce’s sports podcast, Swift revealed just what fans can expect from the new album.
Image: Taylor Swift and boyfriend Travis Kelce on the New Heights podcast. Pic: New Heights
The Life of Showgirl, written during the European leg of her record-breaking Eras tour, will be released on 3 October.
It consists of 12 songs, including the title track that features pop star Sabrina Carpenter.
The full track list is:
1. The Fate Of Ophelia 2. Elizabeth Taylor 3. Opalite 4. Father Figure 5. Eldest Daughter 6. Ruin The Friendship 7. Actually Romantic 8. Wi$h Li$t 9. Wood 10. Cancelled! 11. Honey 12. The Life Of A Showgirl (featuring Sabrina Carpenter)
Long-time collaborators Max Martin and Shellback, two Swedish producers who worked with Swift on some of her biggest hits, joined the pop star for this album.
Within four hours of posting the full podcast episode on YouTube, it had already gathered 4.7m views.
Image: The cover of Taylor Swift’s newly announced album. Pic: Republic Records
Image: The back cover of Taylor Swift’s 12th studio album The Life Of A Showgirl. Pic: Republic Records
‘The hardest-working star in pop’
The album follows last year’s The Tortured Poets Department, which was released during the Eras tour.
That tour, with shows on five continents and in 51 cities, raked in more than $2.2bn (£1.62bn) and was the highest-grossing tour of all time.
“This album is about what was going on behind the scenes in my inner life during this tour, which was so exuberant and electric and vibrant,” Swift said during her podcast appearance.
Sky News culture and entertainment reporter Gemma Peplowsaid after her globe-trotting tour and a swathe of re-releases over recent years, the new album cemented Swift’s reputation “as the hardest-working star in pop”.
But there are fears they will discuss a deal robbing Ukraine of the land currently occupied by Russia – something Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said he won’t accept.
Here’s what three of our correspondents think ahead of the much-anticipated face-to-face.
Putin’s legacy is at stake – he’ll want territory and more By Ivor Bennett, Moscow correspondent, in Alaska
Putin doesn’t just want victory. He needs it.
Three and a half years after he ordered the invasion of Ukraine, this war has to end in a visible win for the Russian president. It can’t have been for nothing. His legacy is at stake.
So the only deal I think he’ll be willing to accept at Friday’s summit is one that secures Moscow’s goals.
These include territory (full control of the four Ukrainian regions which Russia has already claimed), permanent neutrality for Kyiv and limits on its armed forces.
I expect he’ll be trying to convince Trump that such a deal is the quickest path to peace. The only alternative, in Russia’s eyes, is an outright triumph on the battlefield.
Image: Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump meeting in Osaka in 2019
I think Putin‘s hope is that the American president agrees with this view and then gives Ukraine a choice: accept our terms or go it alone without US support.
A deal like that might not be possible this week, but it may be in the future if Putin can give Trump something in return.
That’s why there’s been lots of talk from Moscow this week about all the lucrative business deals that can come from better US-Russia relations.
The Kremlin will want to use this opportunity to remind the White House of what else it can offer, apart from an end to the fighting.
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4:25
What will Kyiv be asked to give up?
Ukraine would rather this summit not be happening By Dominic Waghorn, international affairs editor, in Ukraine
Ukraine would far rather this meeting wasn’t happening.
Trump seemed to have lost patience with Putin and was about to hit Russia with more severe sanctions until he was distracted by the Russian leader’s suggestion that they meet.
Ukrainians say the Alaska summit rewards Putin by putting him back on the world stage.
But the meeting is happening, and they have to be realistic.
Most of all, they want a ceasefire before any negotiations can happen. Then they want the promise of security guarantees.
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2:35
Does Europe have any power over Ukraine’s future?
That is because they know that Putin may well come back for more even if peace does break out. They need to be able to defend themselves should that happen.
And they want the promise of reparations to rebuild their country, devastated by Putin’s wanton, unprovoked act of aggression.
There are billions of Russian roubles and assets frozen across the West. They want them released and sent their way.
What they fear is Trump being hoodwinked by Putin with the lure of profit from US-Russian relations being restored, regardless of Ukraine’s fate.
Image: US Army paratroopers train at the military base where discussions will take place. File pic: Reuters
That would allow Russia to regain its strength, rearm and prepare for another round of fighting in a few years’ time.
Trump and his golf buddy-turned-negotiator Steve Witkoff appear to believe Putin might be satisfied with keeping some of the land he has taken by force.
Putin says he wants much more than that. He wants Ukraine to cease to exist as a country separate from Russia.
Any agreement short of that is only likely to be temporary.
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1:41
Zelenskyy: I told Trump ‘Putin is bluffing’
Trump’s pride on the line – he has a reputation to restore By Martha Kelner, US correspondent, in Alaska
As with anything Donald Trump does, he already has a picture in his mind.
The image of Trump shaking hands with the ultimate strongman leader, Vladimir Putin, on US soil calls to his vanity and love of an attention-grabbing moment.
There is also pride at stake.
Image: Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska, where Trump will meet his Russian counterpart. File pic: Reuters
Trump campaigned saying he would end the Russia-Ukraine war on his first day in office, so there is an element of him wanting to follow through on that promise to voters, even though it’s taken him 200-plus days in office and all he’s got so far is this meeting, without apparently any concessions on Putin’s end.
In Trump’s mind – and in the minds of many of his supporters – he is the master negotiator, the chief dealmaker, and he wants to bolster that reputation.
He is keen to further the notion that he negotiates in a different, more straightforward way than his predecessors and that it is paying dividends.
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