Warner Music Group Corp. (NASDAQ:WMG - Get Free Report) shares saw strong trading volume on Friday . 2,455,842 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 31% from the previous session's volume of 1,874,702 shares.The stock last traded at $32.18 and had previously closed at $32.48.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
WMG has been the subject of several research analyst reports. UBS Group lowered their target price on Warner Music Group from $43.00 to $41.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Warner Music Group from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $34.00 to $42.00 in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Macquarie restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $30.00 target price on shares of Warner Music Group in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Warner Music Group from $38.00 to $37.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Loop Capital cut their price objective on Warner Music Group from $38.00 to $35.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $35.81.
Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on Warner Music Group
Warner Music Group Trading Up 0.5 %
The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $32.91 and its 200-day simple moving average is $31.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.67, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market cap of $16.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.33.
Warner Music Group (NASDAQ:WMG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.11. Warner Music Group had a net margin of 8.07% and a return on equity of 79.01%. Equities research analysts expect that Warner Music Group Corp. will post 1.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Warner Music Group Announces Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.22%. Warner Music Group's payout ratio is currently 73.47%.
Insider Buying and Selling at Warner Music Group
In other Warner Music Group news, EVP Timothy Matusch sold 1,103 shares of Warner Music Group stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.49, for a total value of $40,248.47. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 88,649 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,234,802.01. The trade was a 1.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Valentin Blavatnik sold 28,230 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.45, for a total transaction of $1,000,753.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 68,264 shares in the company, valued at $2,419,958.80. This trade represents a 29.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 72.21% of the company's stock.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Warner Music Group
Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Warner Music Group by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC now owns 12,269 shares of the company's stock worth $380,000 after purchasing an additional 408 shares in the last quarter. Keystone Financial Services lifted its stake in shares of Warner Music Group by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Keystone Financial Services now owns 10,336 shares of the company's stock valued at $320,000 after buying an additional 432 shares in the last quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton lifted its stake in shares of Warner Music Group by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 3,705 shares of the company's stock valued at $115,000 after buying an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in shares of Warner Music Group by 13.1% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 3,967 shares of the company's stock valued at $123,000 after buying an additional 458 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Ltd. CA increased its position in shares of Warner Music Group by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Ltd. CA now owns 117,095 shares of the company's stock worth $3,630,000 after acquiring an additional 479 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.88% of the company's stock.
Warner Music Group Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
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.
Further Reading
Before you consider Warner Music Group, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Warner Music Group wasn't on the list.
While Warner Music Group currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.
View The Five Stocks Here
Nuclear energy stocks are roaring. It's the hottest energy sector of the year. Cameco Corp, Paladin Energy, and BWX Technologies were all up more than 40% in 2024. The biggest market moves could still be ahead of us, and there are seven nuclear energy stocks that could rise much higher in the next several months. To unlock these tickers, enter your email address below.
Get This Free Report
