Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT) Stock Price Up 5.9% - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Spotify shares rose 5.9% to about $590.19, lifting the company’s market capitalization to approximately $121 billion.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $620.07, although some firms recently downgraded their views or reduced targets.
• Spotify’s latest quarterly revenue increased 16.3% year over year to $5.63 billion, but earnings of $2.81 per share missed expectations of $3.18. Insiders sold about $35.8 million of stock over the past 90 days, primarily to cover tax obligations on vested equity awards.

Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT - Get Free Report) rose 5.9% during trading on Friday. The stock traded as high as $587.00 and last traded at $590.1940. Approximately 509,524 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 77% from the average daily volume of 2,183,493 shares. The stock had previously closed at $557.24.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group decreased their target price on Spotify Technology from $690.00 to $675.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Zacks Research lowered Spotify Technology from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Phillip Securities lowered Spotify Technology from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Monday. Citizens Jmp reissued a "market outperform" rating and issued a $625.00 price target on shares of Spotify Technology in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on Spotify Technology from $490.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $620.07.

Spotify Technology Stock Up 5.5%

The company has a market capitalization of $121.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.61. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $529.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $497.90.

Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The company reported $2.81 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.18 by ($0.37). The company had revenue of $5.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.64 billion. Spotify Technology had a net margin of 15.74% and a return on equity of 35.64%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 16.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.28 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Spotify Technology will post 13.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Gustav Söderström sold 20,910 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $530.13, for a total value of $11,085,018.30. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 19,908 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,553,828.04. This represents a 51.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Alex Norström sold 5,436 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $502.10, for a total transaction of $2,729,415.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 66,773 shares in the company, valued at approximately $33,526,723.30. This represents a 7.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 68,092 shares of company stock valued at $35,762,410 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Spotify Technology

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SPOT. Provenance Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Spotify Technology during the third quarter valued at approximately $738,000. Integrity Alliance LLC. bought a new stake in Spotify Technology in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $391,000. Torray Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Spotify Technology during the third quarter valued at $5,209,000. Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management lifted its position in Spotify Technology by 25.8% during the third quarter. Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management now owns 1,208 shares of the company's stock valued at $589,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signature Equity Partners LLC raised its position in Spotify Technology by 20.7% during the 3rd quarter. Signature Equity Partners LLC now owns 222 shares of the company's stock worth $108,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. 84.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Spotify Technology Company Profile

Spotify Technology SA is an audio streaming company that operates the Spotify platform, offering users access to music, podcasts and audiobooks through internet-connected devices. Its catalog includes licensed recordings from music labels and artists, as well as podcasts and other audio content from creators and publishers.

Spotify provides both an ad-supported service and subscription-based Premium plans. Premium subscribers generally receive ad-free listening and additional features, while the advertising-supported service allows users to access content without a paid subscription.

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