HBK Investments L P Purchases 2,604,732 Shares of Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. $WBD

Key Points

• HBK Investments increased its Warner Bros. Discovery position by 15.9%, purchasing 2.6 million additional shares to own 18.97 million shares valued at approximately $505.6 million. Institutional investors collectively own about 59.95% of WBD.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $27.69. Recent recommendations ranged from Strong Buy to Sell.
• WBD shares traded near $28.07, while the company’s latest quarter showed better-than-expected adjusted earnings but an 11.2% year-over-year revenue decline; the proposed Paramount transaction and related regulatory challenges remain major near-term catalysts.

HBK Investments L P increased its position in Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD - Free Report) by 15.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,965,932 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,604,732 shares during the period. Warner Bros. Discovery makes up about 4.9% of HBK Investments L P's portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. HBK Investments L P owned about 0.76% of Warner Bros. Discovery worth $505,632,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WBD. Tidal Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 11.5% in the second quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 149,171 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,977,000 after purchasing an additional 15,374 shares during the period. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 35.3% during the second quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 2,516 shares of the company's stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 656 shares during the period. National Pension Service boosted its position in Warner Bros. Discovery by 3.5% in the second quarter. National Pension Service now owns 6,792,065 shares of the company's stock valued at $181,076,000 after buying an additional 229,635 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC boosted its position in Warner Bros. Discovery by 17.7% in the second quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 35,326 shares of the company's stock valued at $942,000 after buying an additional 5,305 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Community Bank N.A. increased its holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery by 9.9% in the 2nd quarter. Community Bank N.A. now owns 4,170 shares of the company's stock worth $111,000 after buying an additional 374 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.95% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WBD has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Freedom Capital raised shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research 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 report on Tuesday, August 18th. 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. Zacks Research raised shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Huber Research upgraded shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from an "underweight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $27.69.

Key Warner Bros. Discovery News

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

• Positive Sentiment: The U.S. Department of Justice backed Paramount Skydance’s request that states challenging the roughly $110 billion WBD transaction post a bond to cover costs caused by delaying the deal. The support could strengthen Paramount’s procedural position and reduce the risk of prolonged litigation-related delays. US DoJ backs bond demand in Paramount-Warner Bros antitrust fight
• Positive Sentiment: A federal judge scheduled settlement discussions between Paramount and the state attorneys general opposing the merger. Negotiations create a potential path to resolve the antitrust case without a lengthy trial, although no settlement has been announced. Judge Sets Date For Settlement Talks In Paramount-WBD Antitrust Case
• Neutral Sentiment: Paramount Skydance extended the expiration dates for its Warner Bros. Discovery tender and exchange offers, keeping the transaction open while regulatory and legal issues remain unresolved. The extension preserves deal optionality but also highlights that closing is taking longer than expected. Paramount Skydance Extends Expiration Dates for Warner Bros. Discovery Tender and Exchange Offers
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst price targets and forecasts continue to provide market reference points for WBD, but the stock’s near-term outlook is likely to remain dominated by merger developments rather than standalone operating performance. Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. stock forecast and price target
• Negative Sentiment: Paramount is preparing contingency plans to leave California amid opposition from state attorneys general, underscoring the escalating political and antitrust conflict surrounding the proposed WBD merger. Separate coverage also examines WBD’s uncertain strategic path if the deal collapses, which could pressure the stock by removing a major takeover catalyst. Paramount preps California exit amid state AGs’ Warner Bros. merger battle What’s Warner Bros. Discovery’s path forward if the Paramount deal collapses?
• Neutral Sentiment: WBD Chief Accounting Officer Lori Locke sold 29,115 shares worth approximately $819,000, reducing her holdings by about 25%. The transaction may attract attention, but an individual insider sale does not necessarily signal a change in the company’s fundamentals. Warner Bros. Discovery insider stock sale filing

Warner Bros. Discovery Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WBD traded up $0.04 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $28.07. The company had a trading volume of 20,193,223 shares, compared to its average volume of 22,456,980. Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. has a 1-year low of $17.08 and a 1-year high of $30.00. The firm has a market cap of $70.48 billion, a PE ratio of -22.10 and a beta of 1.57. The business's 50 day moving average price is $27.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $27.22. 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 (NASDAQ:WBD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.14) by $0.20. The business had revenue of $8.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.25 billion. Warner Bros. Discovery had a negative net margin of 8.77% and a negative return on equity of 8.91%. The business's revenue was down 11.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.63 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. will post -1.08 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Warner Bros. Discovery news, Director Anton J. Levy sold 340,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.39, for a total value of $9,652,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 618,067 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,546,922.13. This represents a 35.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Amy Girdwood sold 262,285 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.98, for a total transaction of $7,338,734.30. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 539,374 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,091,684.52. The trade was a 32.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 2,782,149 shares of company stock valued at $77,455,972 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

Warner Bros. Discovery 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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