USS Investment Management Ltd Buys 69,647 Shares of Spotify Technology $SPOT

Key Points

• USS Investment Management Ltd increased its Spotify stake by 269.6% in Q1, buying 69,647 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 95,481 shares worth about $46.3 million.
• Spotify reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, posting $4.04 EPS versus the $3.41 consensus and revenue of $5.25 billion, up 8.2% from a year earlier.
• Analysts remain largely positive on the stock, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $641.83, even as some insiders sold shares in recent months.

USS Investment Management Ltd lifted its position in Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT - Free Report) by 269.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 95,481 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 69,647 shares during the quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd's holdings in Spotify Technology were worth $46,294,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of SPOT. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Spotify Technology by 12.9% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 645,196 shares of the company's stock valued at $374,672,000 after buying an additional 73,722 shares during the period. City Holding Co. increased 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 worth $3,251,000 after acquiring an additional 5,384 shares during the last quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Spotify Technology by 8.2% in the 3rd quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC now owns 80,285 shares of the company's stock valued at $56,039,000 after acquiring an additional 6,100 shares in the last quarter. CI Investments Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Spotify Technology by 101.3% in the 3rd quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 101,829 shares of the company's stock valued at $71,077,000 after acquiring an additional 51,247 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Schweiz AG boosted its position in shares of Spotify Technology by 37.6% during the 4th quarter. Robeco Schweiz AG now owns 18,544 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,769,000 after acquiring an additional 5,071 shares during the last quarter. 84.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Spotify Technology Stock Performance

Shares of SPOT opened at $459.74 on Wednesday. Spotify Technology has a fifty-two week low of $405.00 and a fifty-two week high of $769.71. The firm has a market cap of $94.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.63, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.56. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $473.49 and a 200-day moving average price of $500.18.

Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $4.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.41 by $0.63. The company had revenue of $5.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.23 billion. Spotify Technology had a net margin of 15.56% and a return on equity of 35.73%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.07 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Spotify Technology will post 14.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Thomas O. Staggs sold 5,477 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $526.00, for a total value of $2,880,902.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 3,619 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,903,594. The trade was a 60.21% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Christopher P. Marshall sold 2,650 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the director owned 4,039 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,099,714.54. This represents a 39.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 85,173 shares of company stock valued at $42,176,049 over the last three months. 0.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on SPOT shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Spotify Technology from $580.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Citizens Jmp lifted their target price on shares of Spotify Technology from $600.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price target on shares of Spotify Technology from $750.00 to $720.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Spotify Technology from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Spotify Technology from $670.00 to $600.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Spotify Technology has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $641.83.

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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