Quantbot Technologies LP Increases Stock Position in Warner Music Group Corp. (NASDAQ:WMG)

Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its holdings in Warner Music Group Corp. (NASDAQ:WMG) by 355.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 44,337 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 34,599 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Warner Music Group were worth $1,388,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Concord Wealth Partners purchased a new stake in shares of Warner Music Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its position in shares of Warner Music Group by 74.5% in the 2nd 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. Assetmark Inc. raised its stake in shares of Warner Music Group by 9,400.0% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,235 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 1,222 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Warner Music Group by 5,790.5% during the 2nd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 1,237 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 1,216 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Warner Music Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $73,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.88% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Max Lousada sold 428,834 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.00, for a total transaction of $12,007,352.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,289,771 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $64,113,588. This represents a 15.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 628,205 shares of company stock valued at $17,628,757 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 73.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WMG has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Tigress Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Warner Music Group from $52.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Macquarie reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $30.00 price objective on shares of Warner Music Group in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Warner Music Group from $37.00 to $34.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $30.00 price objective (down previously from $33.00) on shares of Warner Music Group in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Loop Capital reduced their price objective on shares of Warner Music Group from $38.00 to $35.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $35.67.

Warner Music Group Stock Up 1.3 %

WMG stock opened at $32.52 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $31.97 and its 200-day simple moving average is $30.64. The company has a market capitalization of $16.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.95, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.65. Warner Music Group Corp. has a 12 month low of $27.06 and a 12 month high of $38.05.

Warner Music Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 19th. Warner Music Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 86.75%.

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.