Warner Music Group Corp. (NASDAQ:WMG) Receives $33.88 Average Target Price from Brokerages

Warner Music Group Corp. (NASDAQ:WMG) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $33.8824.

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Rothschild & Co Redburn raised Warner Music Group from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $30.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Warner Music Group from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $34.00 price objective (down previously from $35.00) on shares of Warner Music Group in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Warner Music Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $30.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Warner Music Group from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th.

Warner Music Group Stock Up 0.2%

NASDAQ:WMG opened at $32.44 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $29.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $30.17. Warner Music Group has a 52-week low of $25.56 and a 52-week high of $36.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.37, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.66. The company has a market cap of $16.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.26.

Warner Music Group (NASDAQ:WMG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.27 by ($0.30). Warner Music Group had a return on equity of 39.95% and a net margin of 4.59%.The firm had revenue of $1.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.59 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.27 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Warner Music Group will post 1.39 EPS for the current year.

Warner Music Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be issued a $0.19 dividend. This is a boost from Warner Music Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 20th. Warner Music Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 126.32%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Warner Music Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. increased its holdings in Warner Music Group by 122.6% in the fourth quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 1,064 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 586 shares during the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new stake in Warner Music Group in the first quarter valued at about $40,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in Warner Music Group by 101.5% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,453 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 732 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in Warner Music Group in the fourth quarter worth $47,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Warner Music Group in the first quarter worth $54,000. 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.