The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Has $30.89 Million Position in Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. $WBD

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company reduced its WBD stake by 5.6%, selling 68,370 shares and retaining 1.16 million shares valued at approximately $30.9 million. Institutional investors collectively own 59.95% of the company.
• Warner Bros. Discovery reported quarterly EPS of $0.06, beating the $0.14 loss analysts expected, but revenue of $8.72 billion fell short of estimates and declined 11.2% year over year. Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with a $27.69 target price.
• Paramount’s proposed acquisition remains the primary catalyst and risk, with regulatory settlement talks potentially improving deal certainty while a reported $7 million daily ticking fee raises the cost of delays. Recent insider selling, including large sales by CEO David Zaslav and other executives, may also weigh on investor sentiment.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lessened its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD - Free Report) by 5.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,158,469 shares of the company's stock after selling 68,370 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company's holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery were worth $30,885,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Warner Bros. Discovery by 4.5% in the first quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,462 shares of the company's stock worth $232,000 after acquiring an additional 367 shares in the last quarter. Krilogy Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Krilogy Financial LLC now owns 14,809 shares of the company's stock valued at $406,000 after purchasing an additional 369 shares during the last quarter. Community Bank N.A. lifted its stake in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 9.9% in the 2nd quarter. Community Bank N.A. now owns 4,170 shares of the company's stock valued at $111,000 after purchasing an additional 374 shares during the last quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery by 7.6% in the second quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 5,467 shares of the company's stock worth $146,000 after purchasing an additional 386 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Elevation Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery by 64.3% in the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,009 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 395 shares in the last quarter. 59.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Warner Bros. Discovery Stock Performance

Shares of WBD opened at $28.04 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $70.40 billion, a PE ratio of -22.08 and a beta of 1.57. 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, Inc. has a one year low of $17.08 and a one year high of $30.00. The company's fifty day moving average price is $27.23 and its 200 day moving average price is $27.24.

Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.14) by $0.20. The company had revenue of $8.72 billion during 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 quarterly revenue was down 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.63 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. will post -1.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on WBD shares. Seaport Research Partners lowered Warner Bros. Discovery from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Freedom Capital upgraded Warner Bros. Discovery from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Zacks Research raised Warner Bros. Discovery from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Huber Research raised Warner Bros. Discovery from an "underweight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Warner Bros. Discovery from a "sell (d-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $27.69.

Warner Bros. Discovery News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Paramount is reportedly preparing to meet with state attorneys general in late October to discuss settlement terms related to its proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. Paramount CEO David Ellison is also considering strategies to secure clearance in California. Progress toward resolving antitrust concerns could improve deal certainty and support WBD’s valuation. Paramount settlement talks article Paramount California clearance article
• Neutral Sentiment: The proposed transaction remains the dominant catalyst. However, a reported $7 million daily ticking fee is approaching, increasing the financial stakes if closing is delayed. Investors are likely focused on whether regulatory negotiations can prevent additional costs and keep the deal on schedule.
• Neutral Sentiment: Warner Bros. Discovery is promoting upcoming television programming and using youth-focused marketing to build interest in the Basketball World Cup. These initiatives may support audience engagement, but they are less material to near-term valuation than the Paramount transaction. Warner Bros. TV programming article Basketball World Cup marketing article
• Negative Sentiment: Two insiders sold a combined 462,285 shares worth approximately $13.0 million. Director Kenneth Lowe reduced his position by 25.31%, while insider Amy Girdwood cut hers by 32.72%. Although insider sales do not necessarily indicate deteriorating fundamentals, the size of the transactions can weigh on sentiment, particularly while WBD faces regulatory and execution risks. Kenneth Lowe SEC filing Amy Girdwood SEC filing

Insider Buying and Selling at Warner Bros. Discovery

In other news, insider Gerhard Zeiler sold 591,038 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.05, for a total transaction of $15,987,577.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 537,436 shares in the company, valued at $14,537,643.80. The trade was a 52.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO David Zaslav sold 773,173 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.01, for a total value of $21,656,575.73. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 6,807,934 shares of the company's stock, valued at $190,690,231.34. This represents a 10.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 2,753,034 shares of company stock worth $76,636,967 in the last ninety days. 0.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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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