Warner Music Group (NASDAQ:WMG) Coverage Initiated at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Warner Music Group (NASDAQ:WMG) in a research note published on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm issued an overweight rating and a $43.00 price target on the stock.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Loop Capital lifted their price objective on shares of Warner Music Group from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Warner Music Group from a sell rating to a neutral rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $17.00 to $21.00 in a report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, Guggenheim decreased their price objective on Warner Music Group from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 5th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $37.18.

Warner Music Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WMG opened at $35.65 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $18.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.51, a PEG ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.50. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $33.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $34.11. Warner Music Group has a twelve month low of $23.62 and a twelve month high of $38.05.

Warner Music Group (NASDAQ:WMG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by ($0.13). Warner Music Group had a net margin of 7.42% and a return on equity of 128.86%. The company had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.68 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that Warner Music Group will post 0.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Warner Music Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 21st. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.91%. Warner Music Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.27%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WMG. NEOS Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Warner Music Group by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 7,917 shares of the company’s stock worth $283,000 after buying an additional 377 shares during the last quarter. Capital City Trust Co. FL lifted its stake in Warner Music Group by 5.5% in the first quarter. Capital City Trust Co. FL now owns 9,597 shares of the company’s stock worth $317,000 after acquiring an additional 501 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its holdings in Warner Music Group by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 9,224 shares of the company’s stock valued at $330,000 after acquiring an additional 545 shares in the last quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Warner Music Group by 8.5% during the 1st quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC now owns 12,516 shares of the company’s stock valued at $413,000 after purchasing an additional 984 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in Warner Music Group by 94.8% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,088 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 1,016 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.88% of the company’s stock.

Warner Music Group Company 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.