Warner Music Group Corp. (NASDAQ:WMG) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Warner Music Group Corp. (NASDAQ:WMG) saw a significant growth in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totaling 6,415,266 shares, a growth of 22.8% from the December 31st total of 5,223,705 shares. Currently, 1.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,970,090 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.3 days. Based on an average daily volume of 1,970,090 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.3 days. Currently, 1.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Warner Music Group Price Performance

Shares of WMG stock opened at $30.20 on Tuesday. Warner Music Group has a 52 week low of $25.56 and a 52 week high of $36.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.78 billion, a PE ratio of 43.14, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.77, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.66. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $29.50 and its 200-day moving average is $31.18.

Warner Music Group (NASDAQ:WMG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 20th. The company reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by ($0.14). Warner Music Group had a net margin of 5.44% and a return on equity of 47.78%. The business had revenue of $1.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.68 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.08 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Warner Music Group will post 1.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Warner Music Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 19th were given a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 19th. Warner Music Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 108.57%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in Warner Music Group by 10.2% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 77,162 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,420,000 after buying an additional 7,119 shares in the last quarter. Amundi raised its position in shares of Warner Music Group by 120.7% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 7,496 shares of the company’s stock worth $232,000 after acquiring an additional 4,100 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Warner Music Group by 5.6% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 948,741 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,743,000 after acquiring an additional 50,035 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its stake in shares of Warner Music Group by 528.0% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,884 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 1,584 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Warner Music Group by 2.4% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 301,988 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,226,000 after acquiring an additional 6,989 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group set a $33.00 target price on Warner Music Group in a research report on Friday, November 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Warner Music Group in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Warner Music Group in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $36.00 target price on shares of Warner Music Group in a report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Warner Music Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 3rd. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $35.35.

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.