Universal Music Group NV’s sales beat estimates in the fourth quarter, boosted in part by singer-songwriter Taylor Swift’s recent album.
(Bloomberg) — Universal Music Group NV’s sales beat estimates in the fourth quarter, boosted in part by singer-songwriter Taylor Swift’s recent album.
The world’s largest music company’s sales rose 17% from a year earlier to €2.94 billion ($3.1 billion), the Netherlands-based company said on Thursday. Analysts surveyed by Bloomberg expected sales of €2.88 billion.
Universal Music, which signed a multi-year deal with Swift in 2018, said in December her album Midnights sold over 6 million units worldwide in the first eight weeks of its release. Besides Swift, other top sellers for the fourth quarter included The Beatles, Drake, Seventeen and Lil Baby.
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The company’s music publishing revenue jumped 30% to €530 million and recorded music sales grew 13% to €2.24 billion. Universal Music reported earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization of €529 million, falling short of the average analyst estimates of €571 million. Revenue rose 22% to €10.3 billion in 2022.
The Vivendi SE spinoff, which went public in Amsterdam in 2021, has been vocal about the need for an updated streaming model that supports all artists. It recently partnered with music and entertainment platform TIDAL to explore a new economic model for music streaming.
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