Spotify: Revenue Growth Easing

Spotify, the world’s top selling music streaming service, expects revenue to grow 20-30 percent this year as currency swings slow the pace from 2017, it said on Monday, as it gears up for a highly anticipated stock market listing next week.

Accoridng to Reuters, the Swedish company said it expected 2018 revenue of 4.9 billion to 5.3 billion euros ($6.1-$6.8 billion), which would mark a slowdown from the 39 percent growth recorded in 2017 when it inked improved licensing deals with major music labels.

For the first quarter, the company forecast revenue of 1.10-1.15 billion euros, up 22-27 percent from a year ago.

Spotify marks a breakthrough for Europe’s tech start-up scene as the region’s first company in decades to carve out, and so far, ably defend its niche - streaming music - against U.S. giants Apple, Amazon  and Google.

Shares of Spotify Technology are set to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange on April 3 in an unusual direct listing that gives insiders the option to sell instantly and does without the support of traditional underwriters - a recipe for potentially high volatility in early trading.

Richard Windsor, an independent financial analyst based in Abu Dhabi, said that, at first appearance, the outlook seemed designed to give the company a very low hurdle it can clear easily in its early days as a public company.

Loss-making Spotify, which is prioritizing rapid growth over profit, said it expected to have signed up between 73 and 76 million paying subscribers this month, roughly twice as many as closest rival Apple has disclosed. For the full year, it said it is aiming for 92-96 million premium users, representing growth of 33 percent at the mid-point of that forecast.

For the full 2018 performance, Spotify said it expects monthly active users to grow by at least 26% to reach between 198 million and 208 million. It also projects at least 30% growth to its subscriber base, with between 92 million and 96 million expected.