Stephens Investment Management Group LLC Purchases 163,247 Shares of Warner Music Group Corp. (NASDAQ:WMG)

Stephens Investment Management Group LLC raised its holdings in Warner Music Group Corp. (NASDAQ:WMG - Free Report) by 8.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 2,163,286 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 163,247 shares during the quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC owned 0.42% of Warner Music Group worth $67,711,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Concord Wealth Partners acquired a new position in shares of Warner Music Group during the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its position in shares of Warner Music Group by 74.5% during the second quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 953 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 407 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Warner Music Group by 5,790.5% during the second quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 1,237 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 1,216 shares during the period. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Warner Music Group during the third quarter worth approximately $73,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Warner Music Group during the first quarter worth approximately $82,000. 96.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Max Lousada sold 64,047 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.25, for a total transaction of $1,809,327.75. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2,909,422 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $82,191,171.50. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 628,205 shares of company stock valued at $17,628,757. Corporate insiders own 73.35% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on WMG shares. Redburn Atlantic reiterated a "sell" rating and set a $23.00 price target (up previously from $21.00) on shares of Warner Music Group in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Warner Music Group from $37.00 to $34.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Warner Music Group in a report on Friday, July 12th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $37.00 price target for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on Warner Music Group from $42.00 to $36.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, Macquarie decreased their price target on Warner Music Group from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Warner Music Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $36.17.

Warner Music Group Stock Performance

Shares of WMG stock traded up $0.25 on Friday, hitting $32.21. 951,276 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,829,842. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.68 billion, a PE ratio of 30.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.38. Warner Music Group Corp. has a one year low of $27.06 and a one year high of $38.05. The firm's 50 day moving average is $30.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $30.73.

Warner Music Group (NASDAQ:WMG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.58 billion. Warner Music Group had a return on equity of 101.32% and a net margin of 8.56%. Sell-side analysts expect that Warner Music Group Corp. will post 1.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Warner Music Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 27th were issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. This is a boost from Warner Music Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 27th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.24%. Warner Music Group's dividend payout ratio is 69.23%.

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.