Spotify (SPOT) is the world’s top music streaming service, delivering over 100 million songs, 7 million podcasts, and 350,000 audiobooks to 713 million monthly users, including 281 million paid subscribers. Its freemium model offers free ad-supported listening or ad-free Premium plans with offline downloads and high-quality audio. Features like personalized playlists, AI DJ, social sharing, and Spotify Wrapped keep users hooked, while artists gain tools for promotion and earnings through streaming royalties.
Founded in 2006, the company is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, with operations in over 180 countries.
Spotify’s stock has shown mixed results lately, dropping 16% over the past five days, 27% in the last month, 32% over three months, and 37% in six months. Year-to-date (YTD), it’s down 28%, with 52-week returns at -32% while trading 47% off its 52-week high of $785. Despite short-term slides, two-year gains stand strong at 81%.
Against the Russell 1000 Index, Spotify lagged sharply short-term; its losses significantly outpaced the index’s milder dips of around 1.5% and 0.70%. Over 52 weeks, SPOT’s 32% drop trailed the index’s 43% rise, reflecting sector-specific pressures amid broader market resilience.
Spotify delivered impressive third-quarter 2025 results on Nov. 4, 2025. Revenue rose 12% year-over-year (YoY) to €4.3 billion ($4.99 billion equivalent), beating analyst estimates of €4.23 billion. EPS hit €3.28 ($3.84), crushing forecasts of €1.97 ($1.87) by over 66%, up from €1.54 last year.
Premium subscribers grew 12% to 281 million (met expectations), with monthly active users up 11% to 713 million (beat 710 million estimated). Gross margin improved to 31.6% (up 56 bps), operating income reached €582 million (€97 million above guidance), and free cash flow hit €806 million, showing strong cash generation.
For Q4, Spotify guided revenue to €4.5 billion (below the €4.56 billion estimated), premium subscribers to 289 million (under 291 million), and monthly users to 745 million (above 739.5 million). The operating income outlook was €620 million, signaling continued profitability focus.
