Calamos Advisors LLC Cuts Position in Spotify Technology $SPOT

Key Points

• Calamos Advisors LLC reduced its Spotify Technology stake by 9.8% in the first quarter, selling 4,191 shares and leaving it with 38,619 shares valued at about $18.7 million.
• Spotify’s recent quarterly results beat expectations, with EPS of $4.04 versus $3.41 expected and revenue of $5.25 billion, up 8.2% year over year.
• The company is drawing continued analyst support and product momentum, including multiple price target increases and the rollout of a conversational AI assistant for Premium users aimed at boosting engagement and discovery.

Calamos Advisors LLC trimmed its position in shares of Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT - Free Report) by 9.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 38,619 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,191 shares during the period. Calamos Advisors LLC's holdings in Spotify Technology were worth $18,727,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of SPOT. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp bought a new stake in Spotify Technology in the third quarter worth $26,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in Spotify Technology during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Portus Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Spotify Technology during the first quarter valued at $32,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Spotify Technology by 423.1% in the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 68 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Spotify Technology during the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. 84.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Spotify Technology News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Spotify launched a conversational AI assistant for Premium users, allowing listeners to request music and get personalized help inside the app, a potential engagement and retention boost. Spotify expands its AI push with a ChatGPT-like music assistant
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple outlets highlighted the new AI experience as a major upgrade to Spotify’s app, reinforcing the company’s push to use artificial intelligence to improve discovery and user satisfaction. Spotify’s new conversational AI can play tracks you request and answer your music questions
• Positive Sentiment: Spotify’s new controls for Release Radar may help users find new music more easily, supporting better discovery and longer time spent in the app. Spotify just gave Release Radar new controls so you can find new music your way

Spotify Technology Trading Up 0.2%

SPOT stock opened at $480.56 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $98.94 billion, a PE ratio of 38.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.56. Spotify Technology has a 12 month low of $405.00 and a 12 month high of $748.30. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $473.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $493.29.

Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $4.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.41 by $0.63. Spotify Technology had a net margin of 15.56% and a return on equity of 35.73%. The company had revenue of $5.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.23 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.07 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Spotify Technology will post 14.62 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on SPOT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Spotify Technology from $600.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Daiwa Securities Group assumed coverage on Spotify Technology in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $535.00 price objective on the stock. Benchmark lowered their price objective on Spotify Technology from $760.00 to $695.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Rosenblatt Securities dropped their target price on Spotify Technology from $534.00 to $531.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Spotify Technology from $500.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $638.58.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Gustav Soderstrom sold 20,833 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $478.45, for a total transaction of $9,967,548.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 20,259 shares in the company, valued at $9,692,918.55. The trade was a 50.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 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 company's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $480.86, for a total value of $2,613,954.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 67,582 shares in the company, valued at $32,497,480.52. This trade represents a 7.44% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold 111,442 shares of company stock worth $54,757,553 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.40% 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.

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