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Hatchimals are back at Wal-Mart, but you'd better move fast

Hatchimals are back at Wal-Mart, but you'd better move fast

Hatchimals, the part-Furby/part-Tamagotchi toys that have sent parents into a frenzy this holiday season, are coming to Wal-Mart (WMT).

The world's largest retailer on Thursday night said it had started restocking the popular toy — an animal that the owner raises after it hatches from an egg — at about 1,700 of its stores.

Each of those stores was set to receive dozens of Hatchimals, a spokeswoman said. It sells for $48.88 at Wal-Mart, and there's no limit per shopper.

The in-demand toy has set parents across the country into a tizzy, with dozens lining up at stores like Toys R Us when a new shipment comes in. That specialty toy store over the weekend released a new batch , limiting shoppers to one per person.

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Toys R Us sold through that shipment "very quickly," but will continue to receive regular shipments through Christmas, a spokeswoman said. Because Toys R Us deals with toy vendors year-round, it typically gets favorable inventory allocations.

Earlier this week, Target (TGT) also said that it would restock the toy, on Sunday, Dec. 11 . There, it will sell for $59.99, and each shopper can only scoop up two.

The gradual shipments of these toys are an easy way for retailers to drive traffic to their physical stores. On Target's website, Hatchimals are listed as available at only a limited number of its locations. They're out of stock on Walmart.com, but can be purchased on the retailer's marketplace for north of $200. They're sold only in stores at Toys R Us, the company's website says.

Data from Adobe Digital Insights, which tracks out-of-stock merchandise online, continues to show Hatchimals at the top of the list for out-of-stock toys, the firm said.

"We recognize it may be difficult finding this in-demand toy," Nancy Zwiers, chief marketing officer at Spin Master, the creator of Hatchimals, told CNBC last week. "We have increased production and a whole new batch of Hatchimals will be ready to hatch in early 2017."

Until then, shoppers will need to continue their hunt, or purchase a Hatchimal-themed gift card.

CNBC's Sarah Whitten contributed to this report.



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