Mattel Dates Its Saja Boys Wave as MAT Closes at 14.53

Mattel has set a release date for the second wave of its "KPop Demon Hunters" action figures, an assortment that includes three of the Saja Boys and follows a first wave built around the HUNTR/X trio plus Jinu and Abby.

Mattel has put a date on the second wave of its KPop Demon Hunters action figures, an assortment that brings three of the Saja Boys into a line that until now has been anchored by the film's heroines. The first wave covered the HUNTR/X trio along with Jinu and Abby; the follow-up widens the roster on the antagonist side of the story, which is where a fair amount of the property's online fandom has settled.

The release schedule was reported by Forbes Business. Shares of Mattel (ticker: MAT) last closed at 14.53, up 1.61% on the session, after a previous close of 14.30 and a day range of 14.13 to 14.69, as of the close on Friday, Sept. 4, 2026.

Why a second wave matters more than the first

In licensed toys, the first assortment is a test and the second is a verdict. A debut wave gets shelf space on the strength of the film's marketing calendar and a retailer's willingness to gamble on a new property. A dated second wave means something different: it means the initial figures moved well enough, or pre-orders looked strong enough, that the manufacturer is prepared to tool and ship additional sculpts and pay for another round of retail placement.

That is the signal buried in this announcement. Mattel is not merely restocking the characters that already sold; it is expanding the cast. Adding three Saja Boys is a bet that collectors and children want the full ensemble rather than the leads alone, which is the pattern that separates a durable line from a one-season novelty. Properties that stall usually stall precisely here, when the second assortment either never gets dated or arrives quietly at a discount.

How the character mix reads

The composition of the two waves tells you how Mattel is reading demand. Wave one delivered the HUNTR/X trio — the core group a casual buyer would recognize — plus Jinu and Abby, giving the line both its heroes and a pair of figures with narrative pull. Wave two goes after the rival act. For a story built on the tension between two groups, that is the natural completion of a display shelf, and completion is what drives repeat purchases in collector-adjacent lines.

It also matters for price architecture. A five-figure opening assortment followed by a three-figure expansion is a manageable ask for a household, while still leaving room for later variants, deluxe packs, or scale changes if the property holds. Nothing about the announced wave commits Mattel to those extensions, but the structure keeps them available.

Where this sits in Mattel's licensing mix

Mattel's business rests on two legs: owned brands, where the company controls the intellectual property outright, and licensed properties, where it pays for the right to make toys from someone else's characters. Licensed lines carry royalty costs and calendar risk — the toys have to be on shelves when the audience cares — but they require no decades-long brand investment and they can scale fast when a title breaks out.

A music-driven animated property is an unusual fit for the traditional action-figure aisle, which has long been dominated by superhero and vehicle franchises. That is part of what makes the second wave interesting as a data point: it suggests the buyer is not only the child who watched the film, but the older fan who follows the songs and the group dynamic. Those buyers behave more like collectors, which typically means higher price tolerance and stronger attach rates on secondary characters.

Investors should be careful about scale, though. Mattel has not disclosed unit volumes, shipment counts or revenue attributable to this line, and none should be inferred from a release date. A dated wave is evidence of internal confidence and retailer appetite. It is not, on its own, a revenue event of a size that shows up in a quarterly print.

The stock backdrop

Mattel's most recent close of 14.53 came on a mixed session for the broad market. The S&P 500 tracker (NYSEARCA: SPY) finished at $770.19, down 0.39% from a previous close of $773.17, with a day range of $769.00 to $772.87. The Dow tracker (NYSEARCA: DIA) closed at $534.08, off 0.53%. The Nasdaq 100 fund (NASDAQ: QQQ) ended at $718.96, up 0.18%, its day range running $716.56 to $721.86.

Against two lower benchmarks and one modestly higher one, MAT's 1.61% gain on the day put it ahead of the tape. That is a single session and should not be read as a verdict on the toy line; consumer-discretionary names of this size move on far more than product announcements. But it does mean the news lands with the stock firm rather than under pressure.

What to watch from here

Sell-through, not shipments. The question is whether the Saja Boys figures clear at full price or sit through the holiday markdown cycle. Discounting on wave two is the tell that the property has peaked.
A third wave, or the absence of one. If Mattel dates further assortments, variants or larger-scale releases, the line is being treated as an ongoing franchise rather than a film tie-in.
Retail breadth. Whether the figures appear across mass retail or stay concentrated in specialty and online channels will indicate how wide Mattel believes the audience is.
Management commentary. Any mention of the property in Mattel's next results discussion — and whether it is grouped with the company's meaningful licensed lines — would give the first real sense of contribution.

For now the facts are narrow and clean: a second wave exists, it has a date, and it includes three Saja Boys. In licensed toys, that sequence is the one that separates a property with legs from a title that sold through once and stopped.

Key facts

MAT last close: 14.53, +1.61%, as of Sept. 4, 2026 close
Second wave lineup: Includes three of the Saja Boys
First assortment: HUNTR/X trio, plus Jinu and Abby
Market backdrop: SPY $770.19 (-0.39%), DIA $534.08 (-0.53%), QQQ $718.96 (+0.18%)

Frequently asked questions

What did Mattel announce?

Mattel set a release date for the second wave of its "KPop Demon Hunters" action figures. The new assortment includes three of the Saja Boys, the rival group from the film. It follows a first wave that featured the HUNTR/X trio along with figures of Jinu and Abby.

Why does a second wave of figures matter?

In licensed toys, a dated second assortment signals that the first sold well enough, or pre-ordered strongly enough, for the manufacturer to tool new sculpts and buy fresh retail space. Lines that fail usually stall at this point, with the follow-up either never dated or arriving straight into markdowns.

How has Mattel stock performed recently?

Mattel shares, trading under the symbol MAT, last closed at 14.53, a gain of 1.61% on the session from a previous close of 14.30. The day range ran from 14.13 to 14.69. That figure reflects the last trade as of the close on Friday, Sept. 4, 2026.

Did the announcement move the stock?

There is no evidence tying the release-date news to the share move. MAT's 1.61% gain came on the Sept. 4 close, ahead of a mixed tape in which the S&P 500 tracker fell 0.39% and the Dow tracker fell 0.53%. Consumer-discretionary names of this size move on many factors beyond a single product announcement.

How much revenue will the toy line generate?

Mattel has not disclosed unit volumes, shipment figures or revenue attributable to the "KPop Demon Hunters" line, and none can be inferred from a release date alone. A dated second wave indicates internal confidence and retailer appetite, but it is not by itself a quantified financial event.

What is the difference between owned and licensed toy brands?

Owned brands are properties a toymaker controls outright, with no royalty payments and full control of the schedule. Licensed brands are made under agreement with an outside rights holder, which means royalty costs and tighter calendar risk, but far lower upfront brand-building expense and the ability to scale quickly behind a breakout title.

Sources

Mattel’s ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Saja Boys Figures Land Release Date — Forbes Business

Photo: Magda Ehlers · Pexels Licence — source