Victory Capital Management Inc. Raises Stock Position in Warner Music Group Corp. (NASDAQ:WMG)

Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Warner Music Group Corp. (NASDAQ:WMG) by 127.7% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 194,644 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 109,180 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Warner Music Group were worth $6,092,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Concord Wealth Partners purchased a new position in Warner Music Group in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its stake in shares of Warner Music Group by 74.5% during the 2nd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 953 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 407 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. increased 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 purchasing an additional 1,222 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC increased 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 purchasing an additional 1,216 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Warner Music Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $73,000. 96.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Warner Music Group Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ WMG opened at $31.85 on Friday. Warner Music Group Corp. has a 52-week low of $27.06 and a 52-week high of $38.05. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $31.78 and a 200-day moving average of $30.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.50 billion, a PE ratio of 30.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.26.

Warner Music Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Warner Music Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 69.23%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Max Lousada sold 64,047 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.25, for a total transaction of $1,809,327.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,909,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $82,191,171.50. This represents a 2.15 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders sold 628,205 shares of company stock valued at $17,628,757 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 73.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on WMG shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of Warner Music Group from $42.00 to $36.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Bank of America reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $30.00 price objective (down from $33.00) on shares of Warner Music Group in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Macquarie reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $30.00 price objective on shares of Warner Music Group in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Warner Music Group from $41.00 to $40.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $44.00 target price on shares of Warner Music Group in a research report on Friday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $36.00.

Warner Music Group 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.