Share price – Music & Copyright's Blog

The latest issue of Music & Copyright is now available for subscribers to download. Here are some of the highlights.

SPECIAL FOCUS: Deal dollars keep on flowing despite troubles at Hipgnosis
There are fears that the hectic buying and selling of music catalogs for hundreds of millions of dollars over the past few years represents a financial bubble. The ongoing difficulties of rights fund Hipgnosis have only enhanced those suspicions, while rising interest rates have also increased anxieties. But, while there have been instances of profit-taking, the funding for catalog deals remains healthy, with several investors happy to take a longer-term view. Moreover, with central banks set to ease their tight monetary policies and reduce rates, leading investment funds are continuing to find the cash to finance further acquisitions.

NEWS FEATURE: Seven straight years of collection growth for Bulgaria’s Musicautor
Bulgarian authors’ society Musicautor has reported a seventh consecutive year of rising collections. Although last year’s growth rate was down on the size of the rise in 2022, the rate of improvement in receipts was the second highest in eight years. TV maintained its position as the biggest income source for Bulgarian authors and publishers despite persistent low rates paid by the country’s broadcasters. Concert collections more than doubled, with the number of licensed events increasing to record levels. Digital collections were down year-on-year, but the prior year’s total was inflated by backdated receipts. A return to normality after the COVID-19 pandemic continued to boost general licensing income. Moreover, collections for cinema and theater, two sectors badly affected by the pandemic, also registered sharp growth. Mechanicals benefited from higher sales of CDs and vinyl.

SECTOR ANALYSIS: Afrobeats and amapiano lead Africa’s international music charge
African music is finding real favor outside its home continent. The region’s musicians are now regularly performing in front of large, non-domestic audiences, charting strongly in the US, and picking up prestigious honors. Moreover, South African–born amapiano music has joined afrobeats as one of the leading African genres internationally, with further hybrids set to cut through. Leading music industry players are already making their moves on the continent, but they need to put resources into supporting emerging artists and sector professionals to ensure the development of a resilient African music business.

If you would like more information about the newsletter or to set up a subscription, then send us an email Alternatively, if you would like to download a sample copy, just go here.

Slightly less than half of the publicly listed music companies tracked by Omdia, publisher of Music & Copyright, registered an increase in their share prices in the first quarter of this year. According to Omdia’s Music Industry Sharewatch, 1Q23, 13 of the 29 companies monitored saw growth, with 16 recording a negative performance. Swedish music streaming service Spotify was the top performer with the share price rising 59.8% (see chart below). The price opened on January 3 at $81.88 and closed on March 30 at $130.83. The company’s market cap in the quarter increased, to $27.9bn from $15.7bn. Only one other company scored a share price rise above 50% in the three months: US music and entertainment service LiveOne saw its price grow 53.2%, to $1.02 from $0.67 at the start of the three months.

Change in share price, January 3 to March 30
Source: Companies and stock exchanges

At the other end of the scale, French music streaming service Deezer suffered the biggest decline, with its share price down 53.1%, to $1.37 from $2.91. Deezer’s dip followed a fall of 16.6% in its share price in the final quarter of last year. US broadcaster Cumulus Media was the next worst performer. Its share price fell 41.4% in the quarter, to $3.65 from $6.23. UMG ended the quarter with the highest market cap of all the music companies tracked at €42.5bn ($45.9bn), followed by Spotify, then WMG at $16.7bn. The combined market cap of the 29 companies ended March at $162.6bn, a rise over the three months of $4bn. US-listed companies accounted for 57.9% of the end-March combined market cap total, with the Netherlands 28.2% and South Korea 6.5% (see chart below).

Share of total market cap of companies by country of listing, 1Q23
Source: Omdia

If you would like more information about Omdia and Music & Copyright or set up a subscription, then send us an email Alternatively, if you would like to download a sample copy of the newsletter, just go here.