Key Points
- Director Kenneth Lowe sold 200,000 Warner Bros. Discovery shares for approximately $5.67 million at an average price of $28.35, reducing his direct ownership by 20.2% to 790,108 shares.
- WBD shares opened at $28.25, near the top of their 52-week range, while the company’s latest quarter showed an adjusted EPS beat of $0.06 but revenue of $8.72 billion, down 11.2% year over year and below estimates.
- Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $27.69; institutional investors own roughly 59.95% of the company.
Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD - Get Free Report) Director Kenneth Lowe sold 200,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.35, for a total value of $5,670,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 790,108 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,399,561.80. The trade was a 20.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.
Warner Bros. Discovery Stock Down 0.4%
Shares of Warner Bros. Discovery stock opened at $28.25 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $70.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -22.24 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78. Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. has a 52-week low of $11.77 and a 52-week high of $30.00. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $27.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $27.26.
Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.14) by $0.20. The business had revenue of $8.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.25 billion. Warner Bros. Discovery had a negative return on equity of 8.91% and a negative net margin of 8.77%.The firm's quarterly revenue was down 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.63 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. will post -1.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Trending Headlines about Warner Bros. Discovery
Here are the key news stories impacting Warner Bros. Discovery this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Warner Bros. Discovery reached a deal with Turkey’s Doğuş Media Group to bring Turkish scripted programming to HBO Max. The agreement could improve the service’s international content offering and subscriber appeal. WBD partners with Doğuş to bring Turkish drama to HBO Max
- Positive Sentiment: WBD launched a shoppable streaming experience in Poland, creating a potential new advertising and commerce revenue channel. The financial impact is likely limited initially but supports its broader streaming monetization strategy. WBD launches shoppable streaming experience in Poland
- Neutral Sentiment: WBD will discontinue the standalone discovery+ app in India, apparently consolidating content within a broader HBO Max strategy. The move could reduce operating complexity, although it may risk disrupting some existing customers. WBD to discontinue standalone discovery+ app in India
- Neutral Sentiment: Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating on WBD, indicating limited conviction that the stock’s recent gains will continue without clearer improvement in profitability and its streaming outlook. WBD given consensus Hold rating
- Negative Sentiment: A director sold 200,000 WBD shares for approximately $5.67 million, reducing his direct holdings by 20.2%. While the sale may be personal or portfolio-related, the sizable insider transaction can weigh on sentiment. SEC insider-trading filing
- Negative Sentiment: A reported state antitrust lawsuit threatens Paramount’s proposed Warner Bros. Discovery deal, raising uncertainty over regulatory approval, timing and the potential value of the transaction. State antitrust lawsuit threatens Paramount’s Warner Bros. deal
- Negative Sentiment: Higher-rate expectations are pressuring higher-valuation media and streaming stocks. Although WBD has held relatively steady versus peers, the sector-wide repricing is limiting near-term upside. Rate repricing pressures streaming stocks
Analysts Set New Price Targets
WBD has been the topic of several analyst reports. Seaport Research Partners lowered shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from a "sell (d-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Huber Research upgraded Warner Bros. Discovery from an "underweight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Zacks Research raised Warner Bros. Discovery from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Warner Bros. Discovery has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $27.69.
Get Our Latest Report on Warner Bros. Discovery
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery by 111.2% during the second quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 942 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 496 shares during the period. Field & Main Bank bought a new position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in the second quarter worth about $26,000. Swiss RE Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 64.3% during the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,009 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 395 shares during the period. Finally, Archer Investment Corp acquired a new position in Warner Bros. Discovery in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.95% of the company's stock.
About Warner Bros. Discovery
(
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.
Featured Articles
This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from InsiderTrades.com in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].
