Spotify premium subscribers exceed estimates amid push into podcasting

Investing.com - Spotify Technology premium subscribers grew by six million in the third quarter to 306 million, topping the audio streaming service’s previous guidance and surpassing Wall Street estimates.

Quarterly revenue jumped by 16% from a year ago to 5 billion euros, compared with Bloomberg consensus projections of 4.98 billion euros. Earnings stood at 2.48 euros per share, a decline of 24% and missing expectations of 2.80 euros.

The Swedish company, which has been pushing to expand its podcast offerings to combat intensifying competition from other platforms like YouTube, also guided for fourth-quarter revenue of 5.2 billion euros and an uptick in premium subscribers to 316 million.

Spotify has also rolled out new artificial intelligence-enhanced features, including an offering which can help with sorting and curating music mixes. Users can generate bespoke playlists as well by answering prompts about their current mood.

Analysts had expected Spotify to forecast revenue of 5.24 billion euros and total premium subscribers of 314.72 million, the Bloomberg estimates showed.

“We’ve built a strong business that keeps compounding, we invest when we see a path for growth, our costs are moderating, and there is more runway ahead," co-CEO Alex Norstrom said in a statement.

Shares of Spotify climbed by more than 3% in premarket U.S. trading on Thursday.

Original Article

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