Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) Announces Earnings Results

Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The company reported ($0.06) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.04) by ($0.02), Zacks reports. Warner Bros. Discovery had a return on equity of 2.14% and a net margin of 2.00%.The business had revenue of $9.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.17 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.05 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 6.0% on a year-over-year basis.

Warner Bros. Discovery Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WBD traded down $0.34 on Thursday, hitting $22.42. The stock had a trading volume of 48,547,589 shares, compared to its average volume of 48,792,672. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $18.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $13.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. Warner Bros. Discovery has a twelve month low of $7.52 and a twelve month high of $23.06. The company has a market capitalization of $55.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 74.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.73.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on WBD shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Arete lifted their price target on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from $24.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Arete Research upgraded shares of Warner Bros. Discovery to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Redburn Partners set a $28.00 price target on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Seaport Global Securities lifted their price target on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from $15.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and fifteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Warner Bros. Discovery currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $19.91.

Insider Activity at Warner Bros. Discovery

In related news, insider Bruce Campbell sold 289,322 shares of Warner Bros. Discovery stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.48, for a total value of $4,768,026.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 402,464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,632,606.72. The trade was a 41.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Anton J. Levy purchased 250,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $10.90 per share, with a total value of $2,725,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 874,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,526,600. The trade was a 40.06% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders sold 1,192,325 shares of company stock valued at $22,818,215 over the last ninety days. 1.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 304.9% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 68,950 shares of the company’s stock valued at $729,000 after buying an additional 51,920 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery by 6.2% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 65,082 shares of the company’s stock worth $698,000 after purchasing an additional 3,779 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery by 50.5% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 63,254 shares of the company’s stock worth $679,000 after purchasing an additional 21,228 shares during the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new stake in Warner Bros. Discovery during the 2nd quarter worth about $659,000. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery by 5.7% during the 2nd quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 49,290 shares of the company’s stock worth $565,000 after purchasing an additional 2,673 shares during the last quarter. 59.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Warner Bros. Discovery

Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc operates as a media and entertainment company worldwide. It operates through three segments: Studios, Network, and DTC. The Studios segment produces and releases feature films for initial exhibition in theaters; produces and licenses television programs to its networks and third parties and direct-to-consumer services; distributes films and television programs to various third parties and internal television; and offers streaming services and distribution through the home entertainment market, themed experience licensing, and interactive gaming.