Apparently, as Aqua once warned, it's a Barbie world, we just live in it. Toy maker Mattel Inc. (NYSE:MAT) earned an upgrade this morning from Lehman Brothers Holdings (NYSE:LEH), which lifted its rating to "equal weight" from "underweight." The brokerage attributed its change of heart to the increased popularity of the controversially-proportioned doll, which celebrates its 48th birthday in early March. LEH is also encouraged by MAT's earnings-growth estimate of 10 percent, excluding buybacks, for 2008. In early trading, MAT shares have ramped up more than one percent to a new 52-week high. The stock is now trading in territory not seen since May 1999 and remains supported by its 10-day moving average.
Beth Gaston Moon is an analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research.
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