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2025 Q1 Earnings: Here’s What Every Music Company Made

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1 year ago

8 May 2025

2025 Q1 Earnings: Here’s What Every Music Company Made

While many public companies are struggling amid the backdrop of macroeconomic uncertainty and the looming threat of global tariffs, music company executives are beating the drum for music as a stable place to invest.

Despite a plateauing of the growth curve, revenue from streaming subscriptions continues to drive relative stability at Spotify, Unversal Music Group and Deezer, companies that each reported earnings on Tuesday (April 29) for the quarter that ended March 31.

Here are the top line results for each of the music companies that have reported as of May 8, 2025, listed in alphabetical order. Click on the link in the summary to get the full story for each company.

Deezer: French streaming company Deezer eked out a quarterly revenue gain to remain on track to achieve profitability in 2025, with a 1.1% increase in revenue of 134 million euros ($145.08 million) in the first quarter. The gains were driven primarily by 6.3% growth in Deezer’s direct subscriber base in France, which brings the total number of subscribers overall to 9.4 million. Read on.
HYBE: South Korea’s HYBE used artists’ heavy touring schedules and strong merchandise and licensing revenues to offset a dip in recorded music sales to post revenue gains of 38.7%, or 500.6 billion KRW ($350 million). Nonetheless, it was HYBE’s second-lowest quarterly revenue since the first quarter of 2023. For more on HYBE’s J-Hope and all the rest, click here.
Live Nation: First quarter revenue declined 11% (8% in constant currency) to $3.38 billion while adjusted operating income fell 6% (or 0.5% in constant currency) to $341.1 million. The first quarter tends to be slow, however, and numerous metrics — ticket sales for Live Nation concerts, event-related deferred revenue and fee-bearing ticket sales — point to the coming quarters being much stronger. Go here for more.
MSG Entertainment (MSGE): The New York City-based live events company’s revenue rose 6% to $243 million in the fiscal third quarter ended March 31. CEO James Dolan said MSGE is “on track to deliver solid adjusted operating income growth” in the full fiscal year. Revenue from entertainment offerings rose 10% to $160 million. Event-related revenue fell $3.6 million due primarily to lower revenue from concerts, which the company attributed to more rentals (versus fewer promoted events) and a drop in the number of concerts compared to the prior-year period.
SiriusXM: The satellite radio company reported a 303,000 decline in subscribers, a 4% drop in revenue (to $2.07 billion) and a 15% decline in net income (to $204 million). Lower operating expenses from staff cuts and the reversal of Sirius’s streaming strategy partly offset the declines. Its podcast business, which launched two Alex Morgan channels in the quarter, reported a 33% revenue increase and 70 million monthly listeners. More details in the full article.
SM Entertainment: The K-pop company behind NCT Dream and aespa had a decent first quarter: revenues grew 5% to $159 million and operating income jumped 110% to $22 million. Live performances by NCT 127, aespa and TVXQ helped concert revenue jump 58% to $27 million. Recorded music revenue increased 23% despite having fewer major releases. For details on upcoming releases and tours, go to the full article.
Sphere Entertainment Co.: The Sphere venue had fewer events in the fiscal quarter ended March 31, leading revenue to fall 12.8% to $158 million. But because selling, general and administrative costs fell by 12%, adjusted operating income was flat at $13 million. Consolidated revenue, which includes MSG Networks, fell 13% to $281 million. CEO James Dolan isn’t concerned about a possible downturn in tourism, saying concert demand is so strong “we have room to absorb any issues.” Click here for more.
Spotify: Spotify’s first quarter revenue rose 15% to 4.2 billion euros ($4.54 billion), as it added a greater-than-projected 5 million net new paying subscribers in the quarter to bring its total to 268 million. That 12% increase in paying streamers marked the streaming and podcast company’s highest first quarter subscriber gains since early in the COVID-19 pandemic, showing the “resilient” appeal of music amid the backdrop of global uncertainty, execs said.
Universal Music Group (UMG): The world’s largest music company reported that strong subscription revenue drove an 11.8% (or 9.5% in constant currency) year over year increase in first quarter revenue, for a result of 2.9 billion euros ($3.05 billion at the average exchange rate in the first quarter). Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) also rose 11.8%, to 661 million euros ($695 million). Adjusted EBITDA margin was flat at 22.8%. For more, click here.
Warner Music Group: Warner Music Group reported quarterly revenue of $1.48 billion edged 1% lower and net income was down almost 63%, as the label home of stars like Bruno Mars and Ed Sheeran struggled with tough comparisons to last year’s quarter. WMG reported recorded music revenue of $1.175 billion, a 1% decline, and publishing revenue rose 1% to $310 million. Net income of $36 million compared to $96 million a year ago was hit by a $34-million loss from exchange rates driving up the carrying costs of WMG’s euro-denominated debt and an $11 million increase in a certain kind of taxes. All the details can be found in the full article.