Key Points
- Fazal Merchant sold 35,000 shares on March 16 at an average $27.48 for proceeds of $961,800, reducing his holding by 26.81% to 95,539 shares (worth about $2.63M).
- Significant insider selling continued as director Paul A. Gould sold ~600,000 shares (~$16.4M), trimming his stake by ~71%, a flow that could create near-term selling pressure.
- Company backdrop and sentiment: WBD reported an EPS miss (−$0.10 vs $0.09 expected) with revenue down 5.7% YoY, analysts' consensus is "Hold" with an average $26.30 target, and Oscars-driven PR may be outweighed by the pending ~$110B Paramount takeover as the main valuation catalyst.
Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD - Get Free Report) Director Fazal Merchant sold 35,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.48, for a total value of $961,800.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 95,539 shares in the company, valued at $2,625,411.72. This trade represents a 26.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.
Warner Bros. Discovery Stock Up 1.4%
WBD stock opened at $27.51 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $68.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 94.87 and a beta of 1.60. Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. has a 1-year low of $7.52 and a 1-year high of $30.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $28.13 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $24.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06.
Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.19). Warner Bros. Discovery had a return on equity of 1.98% and a net margin of 1.95%.The business had revenue of $9.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.33 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.20) earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. will post -4.33 EPS for the current year.
Warner Bros. Discovery News Roundup
Here are the key news stories impacting Warner Bros. Discovery this week:
- Positive Sentiment: WBD-dominated Oscars night — Warner Bros. films “One Battle After Another” and “Sinners” won multiple Academy Awards (reporting up to 10–11 trophies), driving a PR boost for the studio’s premium content slate and signaling franchise/rights value ahead of strategic talks. Warner Bros. Cleans Up at the Oscars
- Positive Sentiment: CEO David Zaslav sent a celebratory company-wide email highlighting the “historic” night and original storytelling wins — a morale/PR lift that can support investor expectations for content monetization and negotiating leverage in M&A discussions. Zaslav Celebrates Oscars
- Neutral Sentiment: Pending Paramount Skydance takeover remains front-and-center — coverage frames the Oscars success as timely but the $110B deal (and related bidding dynamics) is the primary structural story that will ultimately determine valuation. Investors should watch M&A updates more closely than awards alone. Reuters: Oscar triumph bittersweet as Paramount deal looms
- Neutral Sentiment: Some commentary downplays the long-term market impact of awards (Oscars aren’t guaranteed to move box office/streaming revenue materially); treat the PR bump as potentially short-lived unless tied to monetization plans. Fool: Oscars not a big deal
- Negative Sentiment: Large insider sale — Director Paul A. Gould sold 600,000 shares at ~$27.35 (≈$16.41M) and trimmed his stake by ~71%, disclosed in an SEC Form 4 filing. Big director sells can create near-term selling pressure or signal personal liquidity needs rather than confidence. Paul Gould SEC filing
- Negative Sentiment: Another insider sale — Director Fazal F. Merchant sold 35,000 shares at ~$27.48 (~$962k), reducing his holding by ~27%; adds to the raw selling flow that may offset some positive sentiment. Fazal Merchant SEC filing
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
WBD has been the subject of a number of research reports. Benchmark restated a "hold" rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Warner Bros. Discovery in a research report on Monday, March 9th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $31.00 price target on the stock. Barrington Research downgraded Warner Bros. Discovery from an "outperform" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, December 5th. Argus reduced their price objective on Warner Bros. Discovery from $32.00 to $31.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $31.00 price objective on Warner Bros. Discovery and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $26.30.
View Our Latest Analysis on WBD
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Warner Bros. Discovery
Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,123,807,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery by 4,639.8% in the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 22,788,847 shares of the company's stock worth $445,066,000 after buying an additional 22,308,046 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Warner Bros. Discovery by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 281,214,155 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,492,112,000 after acquiring an additional 18,736,600 shares during the period. Jericho Capital Asset Management L.P. increased its position in Warner Bros. Discovery by 108.9% in the 3rd quarter. Jericho Capital Asset Management L.P. now owns 35,095,390 shares of the company's stock valued at $685,413,000 after acquiring an additional 18,291,865 shares during the period. Finally, Maverick Capital Ltd. bought a new stake in Warner Bros. Discovery during the 2nd quarter valued at $77,896,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.95% of the company's stock.
Warner Bros. Discovery Company Profile
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Get Free Report)
Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ: WBD) is a global media and entertainment company formed when WarnerMedia and Discovery, Inc combined their businesses in 2022. Headquartered in New York City, the company assembles a broad portfolio of film and television production, linear and cable networks, streaming services and consumer distribution operations. Its assets span well-known studio brands, premium scripted and unscripted programming, news and factual entertainment, and licensed franchise properties.
The company's core activities include film and television production and distribution through units such as Warner Bros.
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