Advertisement

Spotify's $26 billion stock debut 'a success'

AFP/The Local
AFP/The Local - [email protected]
Spotify's $26 billion stock debut 'a success'
Spotify's IPO is opened on the New York Stock Exchange. Photo: Richard Drew/AP

Spotify soared Tuesday to a value of more than $26 billion in its long-awaited stock debut as the market delivered a ringing endorsement of the future of music streaming.

Advertisement

In one of the largest public offerings ever in the tech sector, Spotify on its first day topped the market capitalization of other high-profile recent market entrants, including Twitter, Snapchat parent Snap and Dropbox.

Spotify opened on the New York Stock Exchange at $165.90 a share, giving the Swedish company a value of $29.5 billion.

It closed at $149.01, a drop of more than 10 percent but still above the pre-trading reference point -- and ending the day with a value of $26.5 billion.

Trading as SPOT, Spotify took the unorthodox step of listing existing shares directly on the bourse rather than issuing new stock, allowing its founders and early investors to maintain control.

The unusual listing had added to the suspense over how Spotify would fare on the market as the company, while big on its cool factor, has yet to turn a profit.

READ ALSO: Swiss or Swedish? New York Stock Exchange flies wrong flag on Spotify debut

"It is a success," Tom Cahill of Ventura Wealth Management said of the listing.

He expected more companies to follow Spotify's strategy in the future, taking their time to list on the market.

"They are getting all the funding they need in the private market and they don't really need to go public as early," he said.

Questions on future

With its heavy investment in building the platform, Spotify has yet to turn a profit.

It warned last week that its sales growth was likely to slow this year, although it still expected to post a narrower annual loss.

Amid Spotify's methodical wait to list, MIDiA Research managing director Mark Mulligan called Tuesday "arguably the most anticipated day in the history of digital music."

He noted that Spotify has been able to hold its own, maintaining 36 percent of the subscriber market despite the onslaught of Apple.

Spotify said in a regulatory filing that it had 159 million monthly users including 71 million paying subscribers -- twice that of closest rival Apple Music.

Spotify's 35-year-old chief executive and co-founder Daniel Ek, in a blog essay before the stock listing, said his company had ample "room to learn and grow."

"I have no doubt that there will be ups and downs as we continue to innovate and establish new capabilities," he wrote.

"Nothing ever happens in a straight line -- the past 10 years have certainly taught me that.

"My job is to ensure that we keep our foot on the pedal during the ups, so that we don't become complacent, and that we continue to stay the course with a firm grip on the wheel during the downs."

More

Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.

Please log in to leave a comment.

See Also