5 Best Mid-Cap Stocks to Buy Now

4. Mattel, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAT)

Market Cap as of September 2: $7.8 billion

Mattel, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAT) is a significant inflation-proof stock on our list. The company is the owner of Barbie and Hot Wheels.

At the end of Q2 2022, Mattel, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAT) posted an EPS 3x its estimates at $0.18. The revenue outperformed the estimates by $138 million after generating $1.24 billion, representing a 20% YoY growth. After the release of Hot Wheels NFTs, the company is also planning to announce its latest NFT collection, the Garage Series III.

The number of growth catalysts for Mattel, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAT) is significantly high. First, the company plans to relaunch its Monster High, Disney Princess, and Frozen franchises. Furthermore, the company has announced a multi-year licensing deal with SpaceX to launch toys inspired by the space venture, which will launch in 2023. On top of that, Mattel, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAT) is also looking to partner with Universal Studios to launch a toy line inspired by Jurassic World and Minions. This makes it one of the best mid-cap stocks to buy now. 

Here is what Longleaf Partners has to say about Mattel, Inc. in its Q4 2021 investor letter:

“Mattel (24%, 1.40%; 16%, 0.96%), the global toy and media company, was a strong contributor in the fourth quarter and for the year. Despite store closures in Asia causing -20% regional revenues during the third quarter, Mattel’s consolidated sales still grew 8% due to its strong North American recovery. Barbie sales remain impressive as they have been for years, American Girl is finally returning to growth, and Fisher Price is also recovering. The company is successfully passing through inflated costs with higher pricing and without losing volume. Despite the impressive results, the stock trades too low at less than 14x forward earnings, and that is before Mattel begins to monetize its massive non-earning asset Intellectual Property portfolio. Our appraisal of the value grew by more than 30% this year.”