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Spotify's Universal Music Deal 🎧

Plus, Solana forfeits recent gains.

January 27, 2025

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Today is Monday, January 27, 2025.

The Early Bird Index today is 84.74

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Spotify's Universal Music Deal 🎧

Spotify (NYSE: SPOT) continues to enjoy good times. On Sunday, the music streaming platform announced new multi-year agreements for recorded music and music publishing with Universal Music Group (AMS: UMG).

Details: Both companies plan to collaborate on growth opportunities, innovation, and the advancement of artists’ and songwriters’ success.

  • The agreement includes new and evolving offers for artists, songwriters, and consumers, such as paid subscription tiers, bundling of music and non-music content, and a richer audio and visual content catalog. 

Background: This new agreement follows Spotify's year of growth. The stock has risen 138% in the last 12 months, including an 11.50% gain in 2025.

Early Bird’s Nest Egg Gains: Spotify has experienced remarkable growth over the past 12 months with its user base.

  • Spotify's monthly active users (MAUs) grew by 14% in 2024 and premium subscribers grew by 12%, helping the company reach its first full year of profitability.

  • Spotify's algorithms power personalized listening experiences and industry-leading recommendation features, creating a strong competitive advantage.

Final Thoughts: The company will post its next financial earnings report on February 4.

Notables

Notable Earnings Today: SoFi Technologies (Nasdaq: SOFI), AT&T (NYSE: T), Nucor (NYSE: NUE), Equity LifeStyle Properties (NYSE: ELS), Alexandria RE (NYSE: ARE), PotlatchDeltic (Nasdaq: PCH), W.R. Berkley (NYSE: WRB), Bank of Hawaii (NYSE: BOH), Seacoast Banking (Nasdaq: SBCF), Hope Bancorp (Nasdaq: HOPE), Crane (NYSE: CR), Transcat (Nasdaq: TRNS), Sanmina (Nasdaq: SANM), Western Alliance Bancorp (NYSE: WAL), Graco (NYSE: GGG), Brown & Brown (NYSE: BRO), AGNC Investment Corp. (Nasdaq: AGNC), Bank of Martin (Nasdaq: BMRC), Dynex Capital (NYSE: DX), Enterprise Financial Service (Nasdaq: EFSC), Home Bancorp (Nasdaq: HBCP), Oxford Lane Capital (Nasdaq: OXLC).

Notable IPOs Today: Sky Harbour Group Corporation (NYSE: SKYH), Shepherd Ave Capital Acquisition Corporation Class A Ordinary shares (Nasdaq: SPHA), Gamehaus Holdings Inc. Class A Ordinary Shares (Nasdaq: GMHS).

Notable Equity Crowdfunding Campaigns Ending Today: Quiver Spirits (Honeycomb), Little Squiggle (Wefunder).

Notable Economic Events Today: Building Permits (8:00 a.m. ET), New Home Sales (10:00 a.m. ET).

Solana Forfeits Recent Gains

The price of the cryptocurrency Solana declined by about 8% on Sunday as part of a broader market correction impacting digital assets.

Final Thoughts: All the price gains that Solana made in the past week are now gone.

U.S Steel’s Potential Activist Investor

The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday that activist investor Ancora Holdings is preparing to wage a proxy battle against U.S. Steel (NYSE: X). It wants U.S. Steel to end the merger talks with Nippon Steel (OTCMKTS: NPSCY).

Final Thoughts: U.S. Steel’s stock is down 22% in the past 12 months as the merger deal with Nippon Steel was blocked.

AI Pain: Why China Startup DeepSeek Could Spell Trouble For Nvidia, AI Stocks (Investor’s Business Daily)

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The contents of Early Bird are intended for informational and entertainment purposes only. They do not constitute trade or investment recommendations and they are not financial or legal advice. Readers are encouraged to consult licensed professionals for personalized guidance regarding their financial or legal situations.