Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-five ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seventeen have assigned a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $609.0476.

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Spotify Technology from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 25th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $565.00 price objective on shares of Spotify Technology in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Citizens Jmp raised their target price on Spotify Technology from $600.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Spotify Technology from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reduced their price objective on shares of Spotify Technology from $531.00 to $527.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th.

Spotify Technology Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SPOT opened at $537.96 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $487.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $485.80. Spotify Technology has a 1-year low of $405.00 and a 1-year high of $745.00. The company has a market cap of $110.75 billion, a PE ratio of 33.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.58.

Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $3.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.16 by ($0.13). Spotify Technology had a return on equity of 41.39% and a net margin of 18.44%.The firm had revenue of $5.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.42) EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 13.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Spotify Technology will post 14.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Spotify Technology

In related news, CEO Alex Norstrom sold 5,436 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $502.10, for a total value of $2,729,415.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 66,773 shares in the company, valued at $33,526,723.30. This represents a 7.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Gustav Soderstrom sold 20,833 shares of Spotify Technology stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $507.24, for a total value of $10,567,330.92. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 20,142 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,216,828.08. This represents a 50.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 73,371 shares of company stock worth $36,222,251 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Spotify Technology

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SPOT. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Spotify Technology by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC now owns 295 shares of the company’s stock worth $206,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Objectivity Squared LLC increased its position in Spotify Technology by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Objectivity Squared LLC now owns 2,582 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,499,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Tsfg LLC raised its holdings in shares of Spotify Technology by 39.7% in the second quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 81 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Condor Capital Management lifted its position in shares of Spotify Technology by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Condor Capital Management now owns 990 shares of the company’s stock valued at $575,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Carl P. Sherr & Co. LLC increased its position in Spotify Technology by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Carl P. Sherr & Co. LLC now owns 4,138 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,007,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.09% of the company’s stock.

About Spotify Technology

Spotify Technology is a digital audio streaming company best known for its on-demand music service and a growing portfolio of spoken-word content. Founded in Sweden in 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon and launched commercially in 2008, the company offers a cross-platform app that enables users to discover, stream and organize music, podcasts and other audio. Its primary consumer products include a free, ad-supported tier and a paid Spotify Premium subscription that provides ad-free listening, offline playback and higher-quality audio streams.