Spotify (NYSE: SPOT) stock rose after reporting Q4 2025 results exceeding expectations. Earnings were $5.16 per share, beating estimates of $2.95. Revenue hit $5.28 billion, up 7% YoY. Monthly active users grew 11% to 751 million, adding 38 million subscribers. Premium subscribers rose 10% to 290 million.

Despite user growth, monetization trends softened. ARPU for Premium fell ~3% to 4.70 euros, while ad-supported revenue declined 4%. Spotify improved gross margin by 83 basis points to 33.1%. Premium gross margin rose to 34.8%, driven by revenue growth outpacing costs.

Spotify posted a 47% YoY increase in operating income to 701 million euros, with a 15.5% operating margin. The company ended the quarter with 9.5 billion euros in cash and generated 834 million euros in free cash flow. It reported 7,323 full-time employees.

For Q1 2026, Spotify expects revenue of 4.50 billion euros, below analyst consensus of 4.57 billion euros. Total Premium subscribers are projected to reach 293 million, with MAUs climbing to 759 million. New co-CEOs Gustav Söderström and Alex Norström took over from co-founder Daniel Ek.

Read more at Yahoo Finance: Why Your ‘Wrapped’ Obsession Just Made Spotify Investors Very Rich