Barbie maker Mattel faces investor pressure to consider a sale amid stagnating growth

Margot Robbie as Barbie in a movie from Mattel and Warner Bros.Mattel | Warner Bros.Mattel is reportedly facing pressure from an investor to consider a sale amid struggling sales and growing buyer interest in the Barbie maker.American investment firm Ariel Investments, a major shareholder in the toymaker, said that as the struggling business seeks a turnaround, it should consider a sale to the right buyer, according to a letter from Chairman and Co-CEO John Rogers sent to Mattel's board of directors, seen by Reuters and the Wall Street Journal."By our estimates, a strategic buyer would pay a significant premium to your current ​share price," Ariel's Rogers said in the letter, saying that the company would be attractive to prospective buyers including entertainment companies and private equity firms. He added that Mattel's options ranged from a "divestiture of significant assets, a merger and/or an outright sale of the company. Mattel's shares were last trading below the flatline in premarket trading and are down 19% since the beginning of the year. Stock Chart IconStock chart iconMattel's shares since the beginning of the year. "We appreciate Ariel Investments' longstanding investm...