Insight Holdings Group LLC Buys 23,880 Shares of Spotify Technology $SPOT

Key Points

• Insight Holdings Group LLC increased its Spotify stake by 317.6% in the first quarter, buying 23,880 additional shares to bring its total to 31,400 shares worth about $15.2 million.
• Spotify has seen mixed sentiment from analysts and headlines: several firms still rate it a Buy with an average Moderate Buy rating, but Wall Street Zen downgraded it to Hold and Benchmark reportedly cut expectations.
• The company recently beat quarterly earnings estimates, reporting $4.04 EPS on revenue of $5.25 billion, while insiders have also been selling shares, including CEO Gustav Soderstrom’s recent sale tied to tax withholding.

Insight Holdings Group LLC grew its stake in Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT - Free Report) by 317.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 31,400 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 23,880 shares during the period. Spotify Technology comprises approximately 1.1% of Insight Holdings Group LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Insight Holdings Group LLC's holdings in Spotify Technology were worth $15,226,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Portus Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Spotify Technology during the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in Spotify Technology in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its position in Spotify Technology by 423.1% in the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 68 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Palladiem LLC acquired a new stake in Spotify Technology in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Spotify Technology during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. 84.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Spotify Technology

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

• Positive Sentiment: Several recent articles frame Spotify as a potentially attractive value or buy candidate compared with peers, which can support sentiment around the stock. XYZ or SPOT: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?
• Positive Sentiment: Spotify is being highlighted as a trending stock with strong analyst interest, reinforcing the idea that Wall Street remains broadly constructive on the name. Is It Worth Investing in Spotify (SPOT) Based on Wall Street's Bullish Views?
• Neutral Sentiment: Benchmark reportedly lowered its expectations for Spotify, which could temper enthusiasm but does not appear severe enough on its own to dominate trading. Benchmark Has Lowered Expectations for Spotify Technology NYSE: SPOT Stock Price
• Negative Sentiment: A report that Spotify deleted more than 500,000 fake streams tied to Malcolm Todd has raised fraud and integrity concerns, which could be viewed as a reputational headwind for the platform. EXCLUSIVE: Spotify Deleted 500,000 Fake Malcolm Todd Streams. A Former SEC Lawyer Says the Bots May Have Committed a Federal Crime

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Christopher P. Marshall sold 2,650 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $519.86, for a total transaction of $1,377,629.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 4,039 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,099,714.54. This trade represents a 39.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gustav Soderstrom sold 20,833 shares of Spotify Technology stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $478.45, for a total value of $9,967,548.85. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 20,259 shares in the company, valued at $9,692,918.55. The trade was a 50.70% 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 sold a total of 111,442 shares of company stock valued at $54,757,553 over the last ninety days. 0.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on SPOT shares. Wall Street Zen cut Spotify Technology from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. Citizens Jmp boosted their price objective on Spotify Technology from $600.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Guggenheim lowered their target price on Spotify Technology from $600.00 to $565.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. UBS Group lowered their target price on Spotify Technology from $735.00 to $690.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, 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 research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $630.70.

Spotify Technology Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SPOT opened at $483.27 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $481.62 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $488.36. The stock has a market cap of $99.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.56. Spotify Technology has a 52-week low of $405.00 and a 52-week high of $748.30.

Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $4.04 EPS 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 quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.07 earnings per share. Spotify Technology's revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Spotify Technology will post 14.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Spotify Technology 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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