Jennison Associates LLC Sells 228,372 Shares of Spotify Technology $SPOT

Key Points

• Jennison Associates LLC reduced its Spotify stake by 7.6% in Q1, selling 228,372 shares and leaving it with 2,778,849 shares worth about $1.35 billion.
• Insider selling also picked up, with CEO Alex Norstrom and CEO Gustav Soderstrom both selling shares in July to cover tax withholding obligations tied to equity awards. Over the past 90 days, insiders have sold 111,442 shares valued at about $54.8 million.
• Despite some valuation and competition concerns, Spotify has had positive recent developments, including a new AI assistant and analyst support such as Jefferies reaffirming a Buy rating with a $600 price target. The company also beat Q1 earnings expectations, reporting $4.04 EPS on revenue of $5.25 billion.

Jennison Associates LLC trimmed its holdings in Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT - Free Report) by 7.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,778,849 shares of the company's stock after selling 228,372 shares during the period. Spotify Technology accounts for about 0.9% of Jennison Associates LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Jennison Associates LLC owned approximately 1.35% of Spotify Technology worth $1,347,492,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Spotify Technology by 12.9% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 645,196 shares of the company's stock worth $374,672,000 after buying an additional 73,722 shares during the period. City Holding Co. grew its stake in Spotify Technology by 2,515.9% in the 4th quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 5,598 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,251,000 after buying an additional 5,384 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Schweiz AG grew its stake in Spotify Technology by 37.6% in the 4th quarter. Robeco Schweiz AG now owns 18,544 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,769,000 after buying an additional 5,071 shares during the last quarter. SBI Okasan Asset Management Co.Ltd. bought a new position in Spotify Technology in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,162,000. Finally, Robinhood Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Spotify Technology in the 4th quarter valued at about $8,233,000. 84.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Spotify Technology

In other news, CEO Alex Norstrom sold 5,436 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $480.86, for a total transaction of $2,613,954.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 67,582 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,497,480.52. This represents a 7.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through 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 the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $478.45, for a total value of $9,967,548.85. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 20,259 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $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 have 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 owned by corporate insiders.

Spotify Technology News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Spotify unveiled a new AI assistant that lets users find songs, build playlists, and explore podcasts using natural language, which could improve engagement and support premium user growth. Spotify's new AI assistant lets you find songs, create playlists and explore podcasts using natural language
• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies reiterated a Buy rating and a $600 price target ahead of earnings, signaling continued confidence in Spotify’s long-term growth and AI-related product roadmap. Spotify seen delivering steady Q2 results as investors await AI remixing updates
• Neutral Sentiment: Spotify was highlighted in an investor letter as having robust results, suggesting institutional investors still see the company as a strong operator despite recent market noise. Market Overlooked Spotify Technology S.A. (SPOT) Despite Robust Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Spotify partnered with Back Market for a back-to-school promotion, expanding brand visibility but with limited direct financial impact. Back Market Kicks Off Back-to-School Season with Survey Revealing How Parents Are Redefining the Smart Tech Purchase - And Debuting New Partnerships with Duolingo and Spotify
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks said Spotify’s growth story remains intact, but warned that a rich valuation, high royalty costs, and intensifying competition make the risk/reward less attractive. Spotify's Growth Story Is Intact, but Faces Valuation Threat
• Negative Sentiment: Spotify also faced criticism after Lorde slammed the company over sloppy AI-generated song descriptions, adding a reputational headwind around its AI rollout. Lorde slams Spotify over sloppy AI-generated song descriptions

Spotify Technology Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:SPOT opened at $478.86 on Friday. The company's 50 day moving average price is $476.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $491.73. Spotify Technology has a 12-month low of $405.00 and a 12-month high of $748.30. The firm has a market cap of $98.59 billion, a PE ratio of 38.16, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.56.

Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $4.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analysts' expectations of $5.23 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.07 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Spotify Technology will post 14.51 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Spotify Technology from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their target price on Spotify Technology from $750.00 to $720.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. KeyCorp dropped their price target on Spotify Technology from $745.00 to $680.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price target on Spotify Technology from $430.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Guggenheim decreased their price objective on Spotify Technology from $600.00 to $565.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $638.58.

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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