First National Bank of Omaha Invests $7.25 Million in Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. $WBD

Key Points

• First National Bank of Omaha opened a new position in Warner Bros. Discovery, buying 250,579 shares worth about $7.25 million in the fourth quarter.
• Warner Bros. Discovery is drawing attention because the DOJ reportedly cleared Paramount Skydance’s acquisition of the company, easing a major antitrust hurdle and raising hopes for a takeover premium.
• The company’s fundamentals remain mixed: it missed earnings expectations in its latest quarter, while analysts currently have a Hold consensus with an average price target of about $27.04.

First National Bank of Omaha acquired a new position in Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 250,579 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,252,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Warner Bros. Discovery by 12.4% during the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,425 shares of the company's stock worth $99,000 after acquiring an additional 378 shares in the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its position in Warner Bros. Discovery by 20.2% during the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 2,494 shares of the company's stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 419 shares in the last quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC raised its position in Warner Bros. Discovery by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC now owns 6,396 shares of the company's stock worth $184,000 after acquiring an additional 425 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC raised its position in Warner Bros. Discovery by 17.5% during the fourth quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,879 shares of the company's stock worth $83,000 after acquiring an additional 429 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Optas LLC raised its position in Warner Bros. Discovery by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Optas LLC now owns 15,120 shares of the company's stock worth $436,000 after acquiring an additional 435 shares in the last quarter. 59.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Warner Bros. Discovery

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

• Positive Sentiment: The DOJ reportedly cleared Paramount Skydance’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, removing a key antitrust obstacle and improving the chances the deal closes. Justice Department says Paramount's Warner deal wouldn't harm competition
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that the merger was approved helped fuel speculation that Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders could benefit from a takeover premium if the deal advances. Paramount-WBD merger wins approval from DOJ, source says
• Neutral Sentiment: Shareholders rejected David Zaslav’s proposed $165 million pay package for 2025 in a non-binding vote, which adds governance noise but is not likely to change the near-term merger story. Warner Bros. Shareholders Reject David Zaslav's $165 Million Pay Package for 2025

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Fazal F. Merchant sold 35,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The shares were 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,625,411.72. This represents a 26.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul A. Gould sold 600,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.35, for a total transaction of $16,410,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 244,357 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,683,163.95. This trade represents a 71.06% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Warner Bros. Discovery Price Performance

NASDAQ:WBD opened at $26.98 on Friday. Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. has a 52 week low of $9.98 and a 52 week high of $30.00. The firm has a market cap of $67.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -38.54 and a beta of 1.54. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $27.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $27.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.73.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. KeyCorp reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Huber Research upgraded shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from an "underweight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from $22.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $27.04.

About Warner Bros. Discovery

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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