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THE HEADLINES

 

‘SERIAL’ KILLER

Need proof that Spotify is sitting on piles of AirPod money? Napster’s more sophisticated older cousin acquired not one, but two players in the podcast space: Gimlet Media and Anchor.

Gimlet, the 5-year-old podcast studio is known for its in-depth, high-production-quality ‘casts. Think: Masterpiece Classic meets the Joe Rogan Experience.

Anchor, on the other hand, is a podcast creation and publishing platform that has broken down barriers to entry in the space. The company claims to be home to more than 40% of the world’s new podcasts. So you can thank them for allowing everyone with a larynx and a microphone to have their voice heard.

But why?

The shopping spree is part of Spotify’s plan to become more than just Pandora for rich people. Spotify, already the second largest podcasting platform in the world, plans to spend $500M in 2019 as part of a massive growth initiative. The Gimlet deal alone was estimated at $230M.

The world’s largest streamer currently only monetizes original podcasts but sees an opportunity in Anchor’s proprietary monetization platform that allows all voices to court ad dollars.

Spotify has 207M monthly active users, 96M of which are paying subscribers. For the quarter ended December 31st, the Swedish streamer posted a surprise €442M profit vs. an expected loss.

 

BUILT GM TOUGH

Time to get a bigger pair of “truck nutz.”

General Motors dropped a heavy duty earnings report, beating fourth-quarter expectations. The Detroit automaker posted an EPS of $1.43 compared to estimates of $1.22, while revenue hit $38.4B vs. a projected $36.48B. GM shares jumped nearly 5% in premarket trading following the news.

Those headwinds though

GM’s net income was boosted largely by truck sales, which remain one of the only profitable and growing segments in the company’s entire lineup.

Sales of the Silverado and Sierra rose 3% from the year prior all while commanding a steeper average price: $44k. The higher price tag can be partially attributed to the higher commodity costs associated with steel and aluminum tariffs.

Speaking of tariffs, as GM hones in on the US and China as its key markets, its success remains tied to the ongoing trade war and China’s sputtering economy.

Meanwhile, the company faces challenges associated with cutting some 17k jobs as part of a massive restructuring that will help the company automate and move away from slower selling sedans.

CHILL THE F*CK OUT

Meditation app Calm has closed a Series B funding round worth $88M. The app-based meditation software, which launched in 2012, is closing in on a $1B valuation, making it the first of the meditation apps to do so. The funding round was led by TPG Growth.

Calm has found its sweet spot in the bedroom. Newly launched “Sleep Stories” are like adult bedtime stories narrated by your mother, that is, if your mother was Matthew McConaughey (he’s one of the narrators.) Sleep and relaxation seekers make up more than 50% of the app’s users.

Currently, Calm is the top grossing fitness app and ranks 20th overall app on iOS. Its main competitor, Headspace, is the 7th highest grossing and ranks 103rd overall app on iOS.

Headspace isn’t going down without a fight … which doesn’t seem very zen. It has raised $75M to date and boasts a valuation of $320M. Corporate partnerships with airlines and the NBA have been a boon for the chill pill killer.

What’s Calm going to do with all that money?

For now, the company plans to expand overseas. Calm only operates in the US, which accounts for just 4.5% of the total global population. Do the math.

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IN OTHER NEWS

• Softbank’s Vision Fund may need to slow its roll. Founder Masayoshi Son has invested roughly $50B of the fund’s estimated $99B in less than two years. At the current clip of $7B per quarter, the gravy train could be tapped in less than two years. Son isn’t worried though. He’s looking to raise more capital for a second Vision Fund.

 

• Tesla is cutting the price of its Model 3 for the second time this year. The $1,100 cut coincides with a massive round of layoffs. CEO Elon Musk cited “profitability being pretty cool” as the main driver behind the changes. Following the expiration of an EV tax credit, Tesla has been trying to find ways to bring down the price of its “common man car.”

 

• Pour one out for print media. The New York Times announced that it added 265k digital subscribers and posted a profit in Q4. The total number of paying digital subscribers rose to 3.4M. In total, The Times counts 4.3M total paying customers.

 

• Chipotle investors are happier than a customer who just got guac for free. The burrito maker’s same-store sales were up 6.1% vs. a projected 4.5%. Chipotle cited mild weather, DoorDash, and the healthier “lifestyle bowls,” as the main sources of the increase. Somewhere in HQ there’s also a “days without E-coli scare,” board that is in solid triple digits.

 

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