Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" by Analysts

Key Points

• Warner Bros. Discovery has a consensus analyst rating of “Hold”, based on coverage from 24 brokerages. The average 12-month price target is about $26.36.
• Recent insider activity has been heavy on the selling side, with executives including Bruce Campbell and CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels selling millions of shares. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 8.2 million shares worth about $230.7 million.
• The company’s latest earnings report missed EPS expectations, posting a loss of $1.17 per share versus an expected loss of $0.10. Revenue came in at $8.89 billion, roughly in line with estimates, while quarterly revenue slipped 1% year over year.

Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD - Get Free Report) has been given an average rating of "Hold" by the twenty-four brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, thirteen have given a hold recommendation, six have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $26.3553.

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on WBD. Zacks Research lowered shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "underperform" rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Argus decreased their target price on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from $32.00 to $31.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Moffett Nathanson upgraded shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, March 8th. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research report on Friday, February 27th.

Insider Transactions at Warner Bros. Discovery

In other news, insider Bruce Campbell sold 1,580,331 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.00, for a total transaction of $44,249,268.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 690,028 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,320,784. This trade represents a 69.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels sold 617,580 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.25, for a total transaction of $17,446,635.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 691,570 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,536,852.50. This trade represents a 47.17% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 8,206,827 shares of company stock worth $230,674,025 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.90% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Warner Bros. Discovery

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in WBD. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 304.9% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 68,950 shares of the company's stock valued at $729,000 after purchasing an additional 51,920 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 50.5% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 63,254 shares of the company's stock valued at $679,000 after purchasing an additional 21,228 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 6.2% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 65,082 shares of the company's stock valued at $698,000 after purchasing an additional 3,779 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 91.6% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 116,821 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,254,000 after purchasing an additional 55,837 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 111,450 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,277,000 after purchasing an additional 4,062 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 59.95% of the company's stock.

Warner Bros. Discovery Stock Performance

Shares of WBD opened at $27.03 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $27.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $27.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.77 billion, a PE ratio of -38.61 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. Warner Bros. Discovery has a 52-week low of $8.84 and a 52-week high of $30.00.

Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported ($1.17) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.10) by ($1.07). The company had revenue of $8.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.89 billion. Warner Bros. Discovery had a negative net margin of 4.67% and a negative return on equity of 4.77%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.18) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Warner Bros. Discovery will post -0.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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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