After reaching an all-time high of $236 on Monday and $241.76 on Wednesday, Spotify’s stock closed even higher on Thursday — at $267.45 per share — boosted by an updated Goldman Sachs review that raised its price target from $205 to $280.
The company singled out its recent podcast acquisitions and new advertising technology that has increased its revenue and subscribers, although its most recent numbers — 130 million paid subscribers and 286 million total global users — were announced in its last quarterly earnings call at the end of April.
Still, the boost is remarkable, considering that the stock was priced at $118 million in March. The company has been on a podcast acquisition binge in recent months, inking deals with Warner Bros. and DC for exclusive scripted podcasts and landing the popular “Joe Rogan Experience” — which is No. 2 on Apple podcasts — via a multi-year licensing deal reported to be for $100 million and one with Kim Kardashian West for one on criminal-justice reform.
It also doesn’t hurt that CNBC “Mad Money” host Jim Cramer has billed the company as the “next Netflix,” a comparison that is not outlandish because of Spotify’s recent investments in exclusive content. That element has been the company’s Achilles heel with regard to music, most of which is owned by parties that license their content to Spotify — consequently, the three major labels, which control the bulk of the world’s most popular music, are continually battling with the streaming giant over royalty rates. Spotify, which is many years from reaching a profit, has paid out billions of dollars in royalties to content owners over the years.