Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD) Stock Has Average Price Target of $28.34

Key Points

• Analysts remain cautious: Warner Bros. Discovery has an average “Hold” rating from 23 firms, with a 12-month average price target of $28.34.
• Recent financial results were mixed: The company beat quarterly EPS expectations with $0.06 versus an estimated loss of $0.14, but revenue fell 11.2% year over year to $8.72 billion and margins remained negative.
• Insider selling and merger uncertainty remain concerns: Insiders sold 2.78 million shares worth about $77.5 million over the past 90 days, while delays to approval of the proposed Paramount transaction add uncertainty despite ongoing financing efforts.

Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the twenty-three ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, thirteen have given a hold recommendation, six have given a buy recommendation and two have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $28.34.

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Weiss Ratings raised Warner Bros. Discovery from a "sell (d-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. Huber Research raised Warner Bros. Discovery from an "underweight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Freedom Capital raised Warner Bros. Discovery from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research report on Thursday, September 17th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $29.00 price objective for the company.

Insider Buying and Selling at Warner Bros. Discovery

In related news, Director Anton J. Levy sold 340,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.39, for a total transaction of $9,652,600.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 618,067 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,546,922.13. This represents a 35.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO David Zaslav sold 773,173 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.01, for a total value of $21,656,575.73. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 6,807,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $190,690,231.34. The trade was a 10.20% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 2,782,149 shares of company stock valued at $77,455,972 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Warner Bros. Discovery

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WBD. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 111.2% in the 2nd quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 942 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 496 shares in the last quarter. Field & Main Bank bought a new stake in Warner Bros. Discovery during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac bought a new stake in Warner Bros. Discovery during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery by 64.3% during the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,009 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 395 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Archer Investment Corp acquired a new position in Warner Bros. Discovery during the second quarter worth $27,000. Institutional investors own 59.95% of the company's stock.

Warner Bros. Discovery Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WBD opened at $30.86 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78. Warner Bros. Discovery has a fifty-two week low of $17.08 and a fifty-two week high of $30.92. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $27.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $27.31. The company has a market capitalization of $77.48 billion, a PE ratio of -24.30 and a beta of 1.57.

Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.06 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.14) by $0.20. Warner Bros. Discovery had a negative net margin of 8.77% and a negative return on equity of 8.91%. The company had revenue of $8.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.25 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.63 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down 11.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Warner Bros. Discovery will post -1.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Trending Headlines about Warner Bros. Discovery

Here are the key news stories impacting Warner Bros. Discovery this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Paramount advances acquisition financing: Paramount has begun syndicating a proposed $7.5 billion senior secured term loan as part of an approximately $44 billion financing package for the WBD acquisition. The move suggests the transaction is progressing toward completion following a legal settlement and could support investor confidence in the deal. Paramount Moves Ahead With $7.5 Billion Debt Raise
• Positive Sentiment: Management coordination signals integration planning: Appearances by HBO and Paramount executives, along with supportive comments from AEW chairman Tony Khan, reinforce the view that both companies are preparing for the combination. These developments are strategically positive but have limited direct financial impact. HBO and Paramount Executives Attend Premiere Together
• Neutral Sentiment: Trading and ownership indicators offer little new information: A market comparison with StubHub-related company STUB provides limited company-specific insight, while the report showing zero short interest appears inconsistent with WBD’s substantial trading volume and should be treated cautiously. Financial Comparison: WBD and STUB
• Negative Sentiment: Merger approval has been delayed: A judge granted a last-minute effort that delayed approval of the settlement supporting the Paramount-WBD transaction. The delay increases closing uncertainty and explains recent weakness in Warner Bros. Discovery shares. Warner Bros. Ticks Lower as Judge Delays Deal Settlement Approval
• Negative Sentiment: Debt and restructuring concerns remain: Merger filings reportedly point to debt obligations, settlement terms and consolidation—not artificial intelligence alone—as major drivers of expected job losses. That raises concerns about layoffs, integration disruption and the heavily leveraged financing structure required for the acquisition. Hollywood Is Blaming AI for Its Job Losses

Warner Bros. Discovery Company Profile

Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc is a global media and entertainment company that develops, produces and distributes television, film and digital content. Its portfolio includes Warner Bros. film and television studios, HBO, CNN, Discovery, TLC, HGTV, Food Network, TNT Sports and other well-known brands.

The company operates streaming services including Max, which features HBO programming, Warner Bros. films, original series and other entertainment content, and discovery+, which focuses on lifestyle, documentary and nonfiction programming.

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