Wall Street has found another way into geek culture: action figures. Gladstone Investment Corporation, a Nasdaq-listed investment company, has acquired a majority stake in McFarlane Toys, the business Todd McFarlane founded in 1994 to make collectibles inspired by Spawn. The acquisition was announced on November 6, 2026, but the purchase price remains a secret.
McFarlane is staying, as is fellow shareholder and CEO Stephan Tetrault. The more interesting question is why a financial investor wants control of a company built on plastic superheroes, licensed characters and dedicated collectors. The answer offers a revealing look at how the business of pop-culture merchandise has evolved, just as Mattel prepares a new range of DC figures.
Table of Contents
- The deal: majority control, undisclosed price
- How Gladstone expects to make money
- Why Todd McFarlane is staying involved
- The DC licensing risk behind the deal
- What could change for Spawn and collectors?
- FAQ: McFarlane Toys acquisition
The deal: majority control, undisclosed price
Gladstone Investment Corporation trades on the Nasdaq under the symbol GAIN. Unlike Mattel or Hasbro, it does not manufacture toys. It invests in established smaller businesses through a combination of ownership stakes and loans, often alongside the executives who already run them.
According to the official acquisition announcement, Gladstone provided both debt and equity financing to complete the transaction. It did not disclose the amount invested, the purchase price, the exact ownership percentages or the financing split. There is therefore no reliable public valuation for McFarlane Toys in this deal, and the use of debt financing alone does not establish how much debt the toy company itself has taken on.
Investment bank Intrepid advised McFarlane Toys on the sale. Both sides describe the transaction as a growth partnership, although that description does not remove a central fact: majority ownership, and the financial influence that comes with it, has changed hands.
Credits : Todd McFarlane / Gladstone Investment
How Gladstone expects to make money
Gladstone is a business development company, or BDC. Its investment strategy combines two ways of earning returns: interest income from lending to portfolio businesses and potential capital gains when its equity investments increase in value. Its goal is to generate income that can support shareholder distributions while also building value for a future exit.
The firm generally targets investments of up to $75 million, although it explicitly says deal sizes can vary. That figure is a description of Gladstone’s usual investment strategy, not the price paid for McFarlane Toys. Nothing disclosed so far permits an estimate of the toy company’s value or its earnings.
What Gladstone is buying into is easy to recognize, even without public financial statements for McFarlane Toys. The company has spent three decades building a brand around detailed figures, retail distribution, direct sales and licensing relationships with entertainment companies, game publishers and sports leagues. Its portfolio has included Avatar, Call of Duty, Marvel-related products and NFL and MLB collectibles alongside its own Spawn merchandise.
Those relationships can create opportunities for repeat product launches and new audiences, but they also carry risks. Licenses must be secured or renewed, manufacturing costs can change, and spending on collectibles is discretionary. An investment firm may see room for growth in that business; whether the expected returns materialize will depend on the products and partnerships McFarlane Toys can actually deliver.
Credits : McFarlane Toys / Marvel Studios
Why Todd McFarlane is staying involved
McFarlane Toys began in 1994 with figures based on Todd McFarlane’s comic-book creation Spawn. The artist helped establish a distinctive approach to sculpting and presentation that made action figures attractive as display pieces for adults. His name remains inseparable from the company’s identity.
Gladstone says Todd McFarlane and CEO Stephan Tetrault retain meaningful ownership stakes and will remain involved in the company’s strategic direction. Tetrault wants to expand internationally and diversify the portfolio, while McFarlane emphasizes the craftsmanship and creative standards that built the business.
Keeping experienced owners involved is consistent with Gladstone’s stated preference for businesses with established management teams. It may also help preserve valuable licensing relationships. Yet the announcement does not spell out board control, veto rights or the precise division of authority between Gladstone and the two continuing shareholders.
The DC licensing risk behind the deal
The timing is worth examining. McFarlane Toys became especially recognizable for its DC Multiverse figures, but Mattel has secured a new multiyear DC licensing agreement with Warner Bros. Discovery that includes products for adult collectors. A major new product line from another manufacturer could reshape the competitive landscape for McFarlane Toys.
In October 2026, Mattel unveiled a premium Batman: Hush rooftop diorama as an early look at its new DC offering. The company also announced that it would reveal its spring 2027 DC action-figure lineup during a livestream on January 1, 2027. Those plans were confirmed in a Mattel press release weeks before the Gladstone transaction became public.
Licensing concentration matters financially. A manufacturer that depends on recognizable characters benefits from their popularity, but it is also exposed when the owners of those characters choose different partners. McFarlane Toys has worked across many properties, so DC is not its entire business. The precise financial contribution of DC figures, however, has not been publicly established in the acquisition announcement.
There is no public evidence that the Mattel licensing agreement caused the sale to Gladstone. The two developments are part of the same business landscape, but linking them as cause and effect would go beyond the available information.
What could change for Spawn and collectors?
Gladstone says it wants to fund new collectible categories, product innovation, licensing partnerships and international expansion. That could mean a broader business than the one Todd McFarlane built around Spawn, although the statement names no new contracts, products or acquisition targets.
The financial tension is straightforward. An investor seeking steady income and eventual capital appreciation wants a business that can grow without losing control of costs. Collectors, meanwhile, value the detailed sculpts, unusual characters and creative risks that made McFarlane Toys stand out. Both priorities may coexist, but a change in majority ownership makes the balance worth watching.
Nothing in the official announcement indicates that Spawn products are being discontinued, that upcoming figures have been canceled, or that prices or the company name are changing. There is also no basis for claiming that Todd McFarlane is retiring.
The transaction gives McFarlane Toys a new financial backer and Gladstone exposure to a well-known collectibles brand. What that will mean in practice should become clearer through future licensing deals, product launches and, eventually, financial disclosures. For now, the most consequential change is in the ownership of the business, not in the figures on store shelves.
FAQ: McFarlane Toys acquisition
Who owns McFarlane Toys now?
Gladstone Investment Corporation holds a majority stake. Todd McFarlane and Stephan Tetrault retain minority ownership interests.
How much did Gladstone pay?
The transaction price, company valuation and exact ownership percentages have not been publicly disclosed.
Is McFarlane Toys now a public company?
No public listing for McFarlane Toys was announced. Its new majority owner, Gladstone Investment Corporation, is publicly traded on the Nasdaq under GAIN.
Will Todd McFarlane still be involved?
Yes. Gladstone says McFarlane and CEO Stephan Tetrault will continue contributing to the company’s strategic direction.
Does the deal mean McFarlane Toys will stop making DC figures?
The acquisition announcement does not settle its future DC licensing arrangements. Mattel has separately announced a new spring 2027 DC action-figure lineup.
Sources: Gladstone Investment, Intrepid Investment Bankers, Mattel