Marvel Entertainment, Inc. (MVL)

Rewind a generation or two and ask yourself what Walt Disney looked like. A company that owned license agreements on a bunch of drawings and a leader that had the vision to monetize that asset with movies, toys, and themeparks.

I believe this is the second chance to get in early on the next Disney. They have a huge inventory of characters, the model to monetize this is already in place (thanks Disney), and as technology evolves over the next decades you can bet Marvel will be at the forefront.

That makes this a no-brainer. Ignore the noise about the next movie being a blockbuster or a flop, ignore the next earnings release, and think about where this company will be in 25 years. BUY!!!

Marvel is an underfollowed growth company that is conservatively managed and is aggressively buying back shares. It's been a long-term winner for me, and is a stock I believe in. Cash-rich with high margins but slow top-line growth, MVL has its X3 movie coming out this year followed next year by Spiderman 3 in May. Marvel is at heart an intellectual property company, with ownership of some of the most popular superheroes of all time. But it's also very obviously a toy company today that benefits from successful movie blockbusters.

I continue to have some questions about management, as they have overseen the launch of many BAD movies in recent years and they couldn't seem to be more ecstatic about them (Daredevil, Punisher, etc.). Fortunately, the quality of Spiderman and the X-Men flicks, backed up a bit by average but marketable enterprises like The Fantastic Four, means that Marvel has more than enough long-term staying power to continue to print money. I like this as a passive buy.

How this stock is still undervalued is beyond me. Does anyone actually realize what Iron Man (I think the incredible hulk will do well also) will do for this company?

Iron man performing as well as it did and being such a good movie guaranteed a few things:

*Iron man 2 will get a large BO regardless of quality (check other initially popular movies that had sequels...you'll find that the sequels may not get as much money, but they will generally not flop even if they are terrible movies. They run off of the last movie's steam.

*Marvel's earnings reports are going to be nice, for at least the next two years. Consider the fact that Iron Man is now somewhat of an overnight icon. This does wonders for their licensing business (their bread and butter). There is also the unmeasurable effect that it has on general interest in Marvel's products and characters.

I really could go on for a long time. This company is exploding with potential. Moving movies in house so others would not be able to screw them up has made this a completely different company. Why are people still trading it like it is the old Marvel?

I don't care if it is at an all-time high...it is still cheap.

I own shares of MVL in my real portfolio. Right now I see it as a great 3 year investment and maybe more depending on how things go in the next 2 years.

I recently bought subscription to a new Digital Comics service offered by Marvel. I simply love it. I think thist is the best reason to start investigating the company. And what I found was more than good enough to get me excited. Over 5000 licensed characters and fantastic business model leaves more than enough room to grow. I specially love the fact that movies literally advertise toys, computer games, comics and of course vise versa. Success in one segment of the business bring money into another.

There are many dollars to be made before we get to a size of Disney.

Solid balance sheet! Tons of cash and they have now entered into the real entertainment business which is movie making. Its risky but the rewards $$$. They will pull this off and I believe in a big way! Can't you see that hi tech special effects are dominating the movie theaters. What better company can capitalize on that with 5,000 plus super heros character.

6-9 months...give time for Iron Man and Hulk to do their box office damage, and you will see the earnings estimates for 2008 were (are?) too low. Producing IN-HOUSE=earnings bonanza on present and future movies. Marvel really needs to get somebody good (me?) to handle their licensing deals. I mean seriously...revenue declines in licensing?

Marvel Entertainment is looking good for the foreseeable future. Turning a B-list superhero like Iron Man into the box-office blockbuster it was speaks well for the company over the next 3 years. Captain America, Iron Man 2, and the Avengers movie will all be massive, massive box office hits.

Marvel Comics has enough established stories, and enough reinventive creativity to stand the test of time. And eventually, steps will lead to maximize cash flow as well. And who doesn't love the F4?! ;)

Their 2008 guidance looks great already and does not include any revenue/profits from Ironman or Hulk. Ironman should be in the top 10 box office this year, while Hulk should be top 20. When these are factored in, 2008 should be a blowout year. Slight downside is due to the strike, they are only expecting to release 1 movie late next year, with the possibility of none at all.

As others have already said I too believe that this is the next Disney.

Many of us have grown up reading the tales of the Marvel Universe's unique assortment of characters and now that they have begun to bring them to life on the big screen, we will be taking our children to see them all the while feeding our own inner twelve year old.

While already a ten-bagger, there are quite a few more ten-baggers left in Marvel. This year was the beginning of a new era for the company.

Although Marvel is trading near its 52 week high, it is with good reason. Its recent movie, Iron Man, has done very well in theatres and has prompted Marvel to raise its 2008 guidance. Marvel has a proprietary library of over 5,000 characters, which gives the company a debth of choices for future films, licensing, publishing and toys. The company has a niche in the film industry, specializing in comic book characters. Marvel appears to be a great long-term investment, perhaps the disney of the Y generation.

Marvel is really "coming of age" at the right time. For fans like me (started buying and saving Marvel comics as a kid) the fairly recent foray into movies has been very exciting to watch. I grew up reading and thinking about these characters, and now, getting to see them on the big screen is amazing. The fact that the productions (for example, Iron Man) are filled with great acting, great characterizations, and of course great graphics, means that a whole new generation is attracted to them too. Also, in troubled economic times, a movie experience is a relatively inexpensive (and mostly healthy, if you stay away from the buttered popcorn) way to forget some of your day to day problems and escape into a fantasy world filled with "gifted" people who overcome great odds to succeed in the end, making you feel good as you leave the theater.

Spiderman 3! Need I say more? Seriously, MVL will probably repeat its trends leading up to the release of Spiderman, Spiderman 2, The Incredible Hulk, DareDevil, Elektra, and The Fantastic Four, that being a run-up until 1-2 months before the feature film release, then a falloff in price as the day-traders anticipiate the success or failure of the debut. Management hopefully will have learned its lessons from failures like DareDevil and The Fantastic Four in that substanative story lines always trump special effects and lead to larger & more profitable follow-on merchandizing & licensing deals. I expect Spiderman 3 will be a success (as were its predecessors), both at the box office and for Marvel's long term prospects. Go Spidey!

Movies and games. Fun and excitment... Iron man is just a taste of whats to come... Marvel is in a position to accelerate its profits in amazing proportions. Kids love movies, kids love games, kids love games based on movies. Kids with parents that have money get what they want. Its a win win situation. I dont see anything going wrong for marvel in 2008. Iron man is going to have a sequel. Its already in the works. There is also a sequel to hulk comming out... We all know how big the first one was... This is a no brainer. BUY IT NOW!!!!

Overbought at these levels, $34.95 at close. I don't think superhero movies are given moneymakers. The more characters they introduce in movies, the further diluted their franchise and credibility will be. Plus they're trading at a ridiculous multiple to book value, PEG, etc.

Just look at that ROE. Look at that ROI. Solid Profit Margin and a very reasonable P/E. Like the rest of the bandwagon, I'm gonna say that Iron Man will help Marvel tremendously in the long run; their whole film production in general will be huge. This also explains their great growth rate in comparison to their sector. Comparing Marvel to their sector again, their profitability is phenomenal. Solid company all around and it seems like they know what they're doing. Even though I'm a DC fan, I would definitely put my money in Marvel. They know how to market.

MVL will reap a considerable amount going forward, now that they will be making thier own movies. Yes it is risky but, with a great debut of X-Men the last stand at the box office, will have ample money to sustain mis steps by Avi Arad.

I see this company going FAR. They have many movies scheduled for the next several years. 2009 is light on the schedule for movies releases, but 2010 and 2011 have many movies lined up. They recently signed up Toby Maguire for 2 more Spiderman movies, of which the first 3 did very well at the box office. They also have Magneto and Wolverene on the horizon. This isn't the simple comic book company from your parents' generation, they are growing at a high rate as they release more and more movies.

With Spiderman 3, Fantastic Four 2 coming out this summer, this one is a safe bet. Where the real risk reward is however, is with the company funded movie projects where they get to keep ALL (ok, probably most) of the profits. Iron Man, Captain America, Ghost Rider are part of this "company funded" movie group, and I'm betting (isn't all of life a gamble?) that Marvel knows how to put out a good comic movie, especially with millions upon millions on the line.