Modera Wealth Management LLC Invests $1.40 Million in Warner Music Group Corp. (NASDAQ:WMG)

Key Points

• Modera Wealth Management LLC invested approximately $1.40 million in Warner Music Group Corp., purchasing 44,796 shares during the first quarter.
• Warner Music Group recently reported $0.07 earnings per share, missing analysts' expectations, and revealed a quarterly dividend of $0.18 per share.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Warner Music Group, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $33.72.

Modera Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Warner Music Group Corp. (NASDAQ:WMG - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 44,796 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,404,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. raised its holdings in Warner Music Group by 122.6% during the 4th quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 1,064 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 586 shares during the period. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise purchased a new stake in Warner Music Group in the first quarter worth $40,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in Warner Music Group in the fourth quarter worth $43,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in Warner Music Group by 101.5% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,453 shares of the company's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 732 shares during the period. Finally, State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in Warner Music Group in the fourth quarter worth $47,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.88% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WMG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Warner Music Group from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. UBS Group reduced their target price on Warner Music Group from $41.00 to $38.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $34.00 target price (down previously from $35.00) on shares of Warner Music Group in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Rothschild & Co Redburn upgraded Warner Music Group from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $30.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded Warner Music Group from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $28.00 to $33.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $33.72.

Warner Music Group Price Performance

Shares of WMG stock opened at $29.26 on Friday. Warner Music Group Corp. has a 1-year low of $25.56 and a 1-year high of $36.64. The stock's 50-day moving average is $28.18 and its 200 day moving average is $30.12. The company has a market cap of $15.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.63, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.43, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.64.

Warner Music Group (NASDAQ:WMG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.07 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.21). Warner Music Group had a net margin of 7.14% and a return on equity of 64.64%. The company had revenue of $1.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.52 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.18 EPS. Warner Music Group's revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Warner Music Group Corp. will post 1.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Warner Music Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 27th were given a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 27th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. Warner Music Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.76%.

Warner Music Group Profile

Warner Music Group Corp. operates as a music entertainment company in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and internationally. It operates through Recorded Music and Music Publishing segments. The Recorded Music segment is involved in the discovery and development of recording artists, as well as related marketing, promotion, distribution, sale, and licensing of music created by such recording artists; markets its music catalog through compilations and reissuances of previously released music and video titles, as well as previously unreleased materials; and conducts its operation primarily through a collection of record labels, such as Warner Records and Atlantic Records, as well as Asylum, Big Beat, Canvasback, East West, Erato, FFRR, Fueled by Ramen, Nonesuch, Parlophone, Reprise, Roadrunner, Sire, Spinnin' Records, Warner Classics, and Warner Music Nashville.

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