Swedbank AB Sells 65,707 Shares of Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. $WBD

Key Points

• Swedbank AB reduced its stake in Warner Bros. Discovery by 4.3% in the first quarter, selling 65,707 shares and leaving it with 1.47 million shares valued at about $40.4 million.
• Several other major institutional investors also adjusted their positions, while institutions and hedge funds now own about 59.95% of the company’s stock.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but cautious: the stock’s consensus rating is “Hold” with an average price target of $27.04, even as some firms raised targets or upgraded ratings.

Swedbank AB cut its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD - Free Report) by 4.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,470,035 shares of the company's stock after selling 65,707 shares during the period. Swedbank AB owned approximately 0.06% of Warner Bros. Discovery worth $40,367,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Warner Bros. Discovery by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 283,180,433 shares of the company's stock worth $8,161,260,000 after purchasing an additional 1,966,278 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Warner Bros. Discovery by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 66,597,575 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,912,634,000 after buying an additional 1,028,346 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Warner Bros. Discovery in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,123,807,000. Jericho Capital Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $685,413,000 after buying an additional 18,291,865 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 27,462,742 shares of the company's stock valued at $791,476,000 after buying an additional 1,254,813 shares during the period. 59.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on WBD. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. KeyCorp reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Huber Research upgraded Warner Bros. Discovery from an "underweight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Zacks Research raised Warner Bros. Discovery from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $27.04.

Warner Bros. Discovery News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Warner Bros. launched an agentic AI-powered advertising product built on AWS, which could help improve ad targeting, strengthen its ad-tech capabilities, and create a new growth avenue for the company. Warner Bros launches agentic AI-powered advertising built on AWS
• Positive Sentiment: HBO Max received 122 Emmy nominations, reinforcing the strength of Warner Bros. Discovery’s content slate and supporting the case for subscriber and advertising momentum. Warner Bros.' HBO Max nabs 122 Emmy nominations
• Neutral Sentiment: Warner Bros. Discovery’s AEW partnership with Twitch for “Dynamite Beach Break” adds another distribution and promotional tie-up, but the stock impact is likely limited unless it drives measurable audience growth or revenue. AEW & WBD Partnering With Twitch For Dynamite Beach Break Livestreams
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that U.S. states may sue to block Paramount’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery have increased uncertainty around the pending deal, which can weigh on the stock as investors reassess the odds and timing of a takeover. US states could sue next week to block Paramount-Warner Bros deal, sources say
• Negative Sentiment: Paramount delaying closure of the deal amid an Oregon probe suggests regulatory hurdles are still unresolved, adding to near-term uncertainty for WBD shareholders. Paramount delays Warner Bros deal closure amid Oregon probe
• Negative Sentiment: Unusual options activity skewed heavily toward puts, signaling that some traders are positioning for downside in WBD shares amid the growing deal and regulatory risk. WBD, AEW And Twitch Announce Creator Collaboration For AEW Dynamite Beach Break

Warner Bros. Discovery Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WBD opened at $26.15 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The business has a 50-day moving average of $26.86 and a 200-day moving average of $27.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $65.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -37.36 and a beta of 1.54. Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $10.76 and a fifty-two week high of $30.00.

Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD - Get Free Report) last released 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). Warner Bros. Discovery had a negative return on equity of 4.77% and a negative net margin of 4.67%.The company had revenue of $8.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.89 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.18) EPS. The business's revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. will post -1.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Warner Bros. Discovery 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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