Spotify posts surprise profit in Q4, sees loss in 2019
Sales growth of most popular paid music streaming service is well below expectations
Stockholm — Spotify, the world’s most popular paid music streaming service, reported an unexpected fourth-quarter operating profit on Wednesday but its sales growth was well below expectations and it said it sees a loss of €200m-€360m in 2019. Spotify posted fourth-quarter operating profit of €94m, compared with a mean forecast for a loss of €16m in a Reuters poll of analysts and a year-ago loss of €87m. The company, which has said it prioritises growth over profitability, saw sales rise by 11% in the fourth quarter, considerably lower than the 31% seen by analysts. Average revenue per user (ARPU) fell 7% in the quarter, as the percentage of cheaper subscriptions rose and as growth in relatively lower ARPU markets outpaced areas with higher ARPU. Investors have been concerned by Spotify’s slowing rate of revenue growth. Sales grew 29% in 2018, down from 39% growth in 2017 and 52% in 2016. The service has reached 96-million paying subscribers since its launch in Sweden in 2008. That ...
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