AustralianSuper Pty Ltd Decreases Holdings in Spotify Technology $SPOT

Key Points

• AustralianSuper Pty Ltd reduced its Spotify Technology stake by 29.7% in the fourth quarter, selling 19,502 shares and leaving it with 46,127 shares valued at about $26.8 million.
• Other institutional investors remain heavily involved, with 84.09% of Spotify’s stock owned by institutions; several funds increased their positions even as AustralianSuper trimmed its holdings.
• Spotify’s recent news flow is mixed: it is adopting Apple’s HLS video podcast technology and cutting Premium prices in India, but it also faces an investor investigation that could create legal and sentiment pressure.

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd cut its holdings in Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT - Free Report) by 29.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 46,127 shares of the company's stock after selling 19,502 shares during the period. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd's holdings in Spotify Technology were worth $26,786,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Spotify Technology by 1.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,622,298 shares of the company's stock worth $3,226,364,000 after purchasing an additional 48,070 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in Spotify Technology by 40.7% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 2,730,713 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,906,260,000 after acquiring an additional 789,755 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Spotify Technology by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,602,625 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,816,632,000 after acquiring an additional 113,612 shares during the period. Coatue Management LLC boosted its holdings in Spotify Technology by 13.3% during the 3rd quarter. Coatue Management LLC now owns 1,803,173 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,258,615,000 after acquiring an additional 212,006 shares during the period. Finally, Swedbank AB boosted its holdings in Spotify Technology by 37.9% during the 4th quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,616,321 shares of the company's stock valued at $938,614,000 after acquiring an additional 444,162 shares during the period. 84.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Spotify Technology News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Spotify Technology this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Spotify said it will adopt Apple’s HLS video technology for podcasts, a move that should make it easier for creators to distribute and monetize video podcasts across platforms, including Apple Podcasts. That could broaden Spotify-hosted content’s reach and support engagement with creators. TechCrunch article
• Positive Sentiment: Related coverage from multiple outlets emphasized that Spotify’s hosting platforms are adopting Apple’s video podcast technology, reinforcing the idea that the company is improving creator tools and cross-platform publishing. MacRumors article
• Neutral Sentiment: Spotify also cut prices for its Premium Standard tier in India and discontinued Premium Lite there. The move could help subscriber growth in a key market, but it may also pressure average revenue per user, so the overall stock impact is unclear. Moneycontrol article
• Negative Sentiment: Pomerantz LLP announced an investigation into claims on behalf of Spotify investors, adding a potential legal and headline-risk overhang that can weigh on sentiment. PR Newswire article

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on SPOT shares. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their target price on Spotify Technology from $750.00 to $720.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Daiwa Securities Group initiated coverage on shares of Spotify Technology in a report on Thursday, March 26th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $535.00 target price on the stock. Citizens Jmp restated a "market outperform" rating and issued a $600.00 target price (down from $800.00) on shares of Spotify Technology in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Spotify Technology from $640.00 to $580.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald cut their target price on shares of Spotify Technology from $525.00 to $430.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $645.77.

Spotify Technology Price Performance

SPOT opened at $436.74 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $487.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $530.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $89.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.80, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.55. Spotify Technology has a one year low of $405.00 and a one year high of $785.00.

Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $4.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.41 by $0.63. Spotify Technology had a return on equity of 35.73% and a net margin of 15.56%.The business had revenue of $5.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.07 EPS. Spotify Technology's quarterly revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Spotify Technology will post 14.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Gustav Soderstrom sold 20,833 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $430.72, for a total value of $8,973,189.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 20,492 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,826,314.24. This trade represents a 50.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Alex Norstrom sold 5,436 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $479.51, for a total value of $2,606,616.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 69,989 shares of the company's stock, valued at $33,560,425.39. The trade was a 7.21% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 47,102 shares of company stock valued at $21,444,648 in the last ninety days. 0.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Spotify Technology Company Profile

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.

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