Strs Ohio Has $20.93 Million Stock Holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. $WBD

Key Points

• Strs Ohio trimmed its stake in Warner Bros. Discovery by 33.9% in Q4, selling 372,501 shares and leaving 726,192 shares valued at about $20.93 million.
• Company insiders have been heavy sellers — including Director Fazal F. Merchant (35,000 shares) and Gerhard Zeiler (600,000 shares) — with insiders offloading a total of 8,206,827 shares worth $230.7 million over the past three months.
• Warner Bros. Discovery missed quarterly EPS (reported a ($0.10) loss vs. $0.09 expected), has mixed analyst sentiment (consensus "Hold"), and faces material near‑term risk from merger-related regulatory/legal challenges and governance scrutiny.

Strs Ohio lessened its holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD - Free Report) by 33.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 726,192 shares of the company's stock after selling 372,501 shares during the period. Strs Ohio's holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery were worth $20,929,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 0.7% during 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 in the last quarter. Jericho Capital Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 108.9% during 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 buying an additional 18,291,865 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 3.9% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 23,496,725 shares of the company's stock worth $458,891,000 after buying an additional 876,869 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 9.7% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 18,820,858 shares of the company's stock worth $367,417,000 after buying an additional 1,658,317 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi increased its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 59.6% during the third quarter. Amundi now owns 15,523,538 shares of the company's stock worth $296,189,000 after buying an additional 5,798,592 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.95% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Warner Bros. Discovery

In other news, Director Fazal F. Merchant sold 35,000 shares of the 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 sale, the director directly owned 95,539 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,625,411.72. This represents a 26.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Gerhard Zeiler sold 600,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.02, for a total transaction of $16,812,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 672,649 shares in the company, valued at $18,847,624.98. This trade represents a 47.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 8,206,827 shares of company stock valued at $230,674,025 over the last three months. Insiders own 1.90% of the company's stock.

Warner Bros. Discovery Price Performance

WBD opened at $26.97 on Monday. Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. has a one year low of $8.06 and a one year high of $30.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $27.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $26.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 93.00 and a beta of 1.57.

Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.10) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.09 by ($0.19). Warner Bros. Discovery had a net margin of 1.95% and a return on equity of 1.98%. The company had revenue of $9.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.33 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.20) earnings per share. Warner Bros. Discovery's revenue for the quarter was down 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. will post -0.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Warner Bros. Discovery News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley framed the Paramount–Skydance–Warner combination as “big, bold, and game-changing,” implying material strategic and value upside if the deal clears and assets are reweighted successfully. Paramount Skydance, Warner Bros. merger a 'big, bold, and game-changing move'—Morgan Stanley
• Positive Sentiment: Warner Bros. Discovery renewed CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels’s contract through April 2028 — a governance/stability signal that may reassure investors about execution on finance, integration and deal-related accounting. Warner Bros. Discovery Finance Chief Gunnar Wiedenfels Gets New Contract
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts maintain an average “Hold” on WBD, reflecting mixed views — upside tied to deal completion, downside tied to regulatory and execution risk. This keeps near-term analyst pressure balanced. Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. NASDAQ: WBD Given Average Rating of "Hold" by Analysts
• Neutral Sentiment: A recent valuation check highlights a disconnect between market signal and cash-flow estimates — useful framing for long-term investors but not an immediate catalyst absent changes to guidance or deal terms. Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) Valuation Check As Market Signals Clash With Cash Flow Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Consumer plaintiffs filed an antitrust and “viewpoint diversity” suit seeking to block the merger, a direct regulatory/legal threat that increases the probability of delays, divestitures or deal rejection. Save CNN: Paramount Hit With Antitrust & “Viewpoint Diversity” Suit By Consumers To Stop WBD Merger; Company Responds
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage of CEO David Zaslav’s compensation tripling to $165M and critical reporting about his role in the proposed sale raise governance and optics concerns that could weigh on sentiment and invite investor scrutiny. Warner Bros. CEO's pay package triples to $165M
• Negative Sentiment: Critical commentary and reporting (NY Post, Vulture) question management incentives and outline legal/competitive obstacles to the merger, amplifying reputational risk and potential regulatory pushback. David Zaslav isn’t just making himself rich selling Warner to Paramount — ask his employees

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on WBD shares. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "underperform" rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a report on Friday, February 27th. Argus dropped their price objective on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from $32.00 to $31.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a report on Friday, April 24th. KeyCorp reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $31.00 price objective on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $26.30.

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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