Franklin Resources Inc. Lowers Holdings in Spotify Technology $SPOT

Key Points

• Franklin Resources cut its Spotify stake by 20.7% in the fourth quarter, though it still held 860,826 shares worth about $499.9 million at quarter-end.
• Spotify reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting $4.04 EPS versus $3.41 expected and revenue of $5.25 billion, up 8.2% year over year.
• Analysts remain generally positive on the stock, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $655.92, even as several insiders recently sold shares.

Franklin Resources Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT - Free Report) by 20.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 860,826 shares of the company's stock after selling 224,176 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.42% of Spotify Technology worth $499,890,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of SPOT. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Spotify Technology during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $711,460,000. Capital World Investors boosted its position in Spotify Technology by 40.7% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 2,730,713 shares of the company's stock worth $1,906,260,000 after purchasing an additional 789,755 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors purchased a new stake in Spotify Technology in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $512,190,000. National Pension Service acquired a new stake in shares of Spotify Technology during the 4th quarter worth approximately $316,278,000. Finally, Swedbank AB grew its stake in shares of Spotify Technology by 37.9% during the 4th quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,616,321 shares of the company's stock worth $938,614,000 after purchasing an additional 444,162 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.09% of the company's stock.

Spotify Technology Stock Up 1.3%

SPOT opened at $503.57 on Tuesday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $481.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $513.25. Spotify Technology has a 52-week low of $405.00 and a 52-week high of $785.00. The company has a market cap of $103.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.12, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.56.

Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $4.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.41 by $0.63. The firm had revenue of $5.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.23 billion. Spotify Technology had a net margin of 15.56% and a return on equity of 35.73%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.07 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Spotify Technology will post 14.72 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SPOT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their target price on shares of Spotify Technology from $500.00 to $534.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of Spotify Technology from $670.00 to $600.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Spotify Technology from $580.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Arete Research upgraded Spotify Technology from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $586.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Spotify Technology from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $655.92.

Insider Activity at Spotify Technology

In other Spotify Technology news, CEO Gustav Soderstrom sold 20,833 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.52, for a total transaction of $10,344,001.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 20,376 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,117,091.52. This represents a 50.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Christopher P. Marshall sold 2,650 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $519.86, for a total value of $1,377,629.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,039 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,099,714.54. This trade represents a 39.62% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 111,442 shares of company stock worth $54,647,508 in the last quarter. 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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