Warner Music Group Corp. (WMG) saw its stock price plummet 8.81% in pre-market trading on Thursday following the release of its fiscal second-quarter earnings report, which fell significantly short of analysts' expectations. The entertainment and record label conglomerate reported disappointing financial results, triggering a sell-off among investors.

The company reported earnings per share of $0.07 for the quarter ended March 31, a sharp decline from $0.18 in the same period last year and well below the FactSet analyst consensus estimate of $0.27. This represents a staggering 74.07% miss on earnings expectations. Revenue for the quarter came in at $1.48 billion, slightly down from $1.49 billion a year earlier and missing the analyst forecast of $1.52 billion by 2.31%. Warner Music Group's net income saw a dramatic decline to $36 million, compared to $96 million in the prior-year period.

Several factors contributed to the company's underwhelming performance. Warner Music Group attributed part of the bottom-line deterioration to the impact of exchange rates on its euro-denominated debt, resulting in a $34 million loss for the quarter. Additionally, the decline in total revenue was primarily driven by lower recorded music artist services and expanded rights revenue, although this was partially offset by higher licensing and physical revenue. CEO Robert Kyncl acknowledged that while there was strength in some areas, it was partially obscured by challenging comparisons with last year's results.