Warner Music Group Corp. $WMG Shares Purchased by Royal Bank of Canada

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada increased its Warner Music Group stake by 125.8% in the first quarter, purchasing 99,702 additional shares and bringing its holdings to 178,936 shares valued at approximately $4.57 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 96.88% of WMG.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with 13 Buy ratings and four Hold ratings producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $38.77.
• Warner Music Group exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting adjusted EPS of $0.51 and revenue of $1.86 billion, up 10.4% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.20 per share, equivalent to a 3.2% annualized yield.

Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in shares of Warner Music Group Corp. (NASDAQ:WMG - Free Report) by 125.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 178,936 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 99,702 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada's holdings in Warner Music Group were worth $4,570,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its holdings in Warner Music Group by 774.6% in the 3rd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,207 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,069 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Warner Music Group during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its position in shares of Warner Music Group by 480.9% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,493 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 1,236 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Warner Music Group by 355.7% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,531 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 1,195 shares during the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE lifted its stake in shares of Warner Music Group by 23.5% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,729 shares of the company's stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 329 shares in the last quarter. 96.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Warner Music Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Warner Music Group in a report on Friday, May 8th. Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of Warner Music Group from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Warner Music Group from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $36.00 price target on shares of Warner Music Group in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $38.77.

Warner Music Group Trading Up 2.2%

Shares of WMG stock opened at $25.34 on Friday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $27.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.94. The stock has a market cap of $13.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.11, a PEG ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 1.30. Warner Music Group Corp. has a twelve month low of $23.34 and a twelve month high of $35.42.

Warner Music Group (NASDAQ:WMG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.17. Warner Music Group had a net margin of 9.20% and a return on equity of 85.50%. The firm had revenue of $1.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.81 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.03) earnings per share. Warner Music Group's quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Warner Music Group Corp. will post 1.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Warner Music Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. This is a positive change from Warner Music Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Warner Music Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 60.32%.

About Warner Music Group

Warner Music Group is a major global music company that operates across recorded music and music publishing. Its recorded-music business comprises a portfolio of well-known labels—including Atlantic, Warner Records and Parlophone—as well as distribution and artist-services operations that support both established and emerging artists. The company's publishing arm, Warner Chappell Music, manages songwriting catalogs and administers rights for compositions across multiple media, providing licensing for film, television, advertising and other commercial uses.

WMG's activities span the full music value chain: signing and developing artists, producing and marketing recordings, distributing music through physical channels and streaming platforms, and monetizing rights through licensing, synchronization and neighboring-rights collection.

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