Carlson Capital L.P. Invests $1.15 Million in Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. $WBD

Key Points

• Carlson Capital L.P. opened a new position in Warner Bros. Discovery in the fourth quarter, buying 40,000 shares valued at about $1.15 million. The stake represented 0.4% of Carlson Capital’s portfolio and became its 19th-largest holding.
• Institutional ownership remains high, with 59.95% of WBD shares held by hedge funds and other institutions. Several major investors, including Vanguard, Jericho Capital, and Northern Trust, also increased their stakes recently.
• Warner Bros. Discovery continues to face mixed fundamentals and analyst skepticism: its latest quarter missed earnings expectations, and analysts’ consensus rating remains Hold with an average target price of $26.36, even as streaming momentum is a bright spot.

Carlson Capital L.P. purchased a new position in Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 40,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,153,000. Warner Bros. Discovery accounts for 0.4% of Carlson Capital L.P.'s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 283,180,433 shares of the company's stock worth $8,161,260,000 after buying an additional 1,966,278 shares during the period. Jericho Capital Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in Warner Bros. Discovery by 108.9% in the third quarter. Jericho Capital Asset Management L.P. now owns 35,095,390 shares of the company's stock worth $685,413,000 after purchasing an additional 18,291,865 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Warner Bros. Discovery by 3.9% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 23,496,725 shares of the company's stock worth $458,891,000 after purchasing an additional 876,869 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Warner Bros. Discovery by 9.7% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 18,820,858 shares of the company's stock worth $367,417,000 after purchasing an additional 1,658,317 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its stake in Warner Bros. Discovery by 59.6% in the third quarter. Amundi now owns 15,523,538 shares of the company's stock worth $296,189,000 after purchasing an additional 5,798,592 shares in the last quarter. 59.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Fazal F. Merchant sold 35,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.48, for a total transaction of $961,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 95,539 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,625,411.72. This represents a 26.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Bruce Campbell sold 41,784 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.82, for a total value of $1,162,430.88. Following the sale, the insider owned 604,666 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,821,808.12. This represents a 6.46% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 8,206,827 shares of company stock worth $230,674,025. Company insiders own 1.90% of the company's stock.

More Warner Bros. Discovery News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Streaming remains a bright spot, with Warner Bros. Discovery topping 140 million subscribers and management highlighting strong momentum in its direct-to-consumer business. Warner Bros. Discovery Earnings Call Highlights Streaming Surge
• Positive Sentiment: HBO Max was described by David Zaslav as likely the company’s “most important asset,” reinforcing the value of WBD’s streaming platform as a key long-term driver. David Zaslav Says HBO Max Is “Probably” Warner Bros. Discovery’s “Most Important Asset”
• Neutral Sentiment: Warner Bros. TV announced special podcast episodes for The Pitt, a small content-related update that may help engagement but is unlikely to materially move the stock. Warner Bros TV Announces Special Podcast Episodes For “The Pitt”
• Neutral Sentiment: Guggenheim reiterated a neutral rating, signaling analysts are waiting for clearer evidence that earnings and the strategic outlook are improving. Guggenheim Reaffirms Neutral Rating on Warner Bros. Discovery
• Negative Sentiment: Q1 results missed expectations, with WBD posting a $1.17 per-share loss versus a much smaller expected loss, while revenue came in just below estimates and declined year over year. Warner Bros. Discovery reports Q1 CY2026 in line with expectations
• Negative Sentiment: The quarter was heavily burdened by a $2.8 billion Netflix termination fee and restructuring costs, which drove a roughly $2.9 billion net loss and overshadowed operational progress. Warner Bros. Discovery posts wider Q1 loss driven by $2.8B Netflix termination fee
• Negative Sentiment: Media coverage focused on the large loss and weaker-than-expected results, reinforcing concerns that near-term earnings are still being weighed down by one-time and integration-related charges. Warner Bros. Discovery Logs $2.92 Billion Loss Tied to Netflix Termination Fee

Warner Bros. Discovery Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of NASDAQ WBD opened at $27.11 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.96 billion, a PE ratio of -38.73 and a beta of 1.57. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $27.48 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $26.66. Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. has a 12-month low of $8.82 and a 12-month high of $30.00.

Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported ($1.17) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.10) by ($1.07). The company had revenue of $8.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.89 billion. Warner Bros. Discovery had a negative net margin of 4.67% and a negative return on equity of 4.77%. The firm's revenue was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.18) EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. will post -0.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James Financial reissued an "underperform" rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research note on Friday, February 27th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Warner Bros. Discovery from $22.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Zacks Research cut Warner Bros. Discovery from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. UBS Group increased their price objective on Warner Bros. Discovery from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Warner Bros. Discovery from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $29.50 to $31.00 in a research note on Friday, February 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $26.36.

Warner Bros. Discovery Company Profile

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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