Rafferty Asset Management LLC Sells 482,877 Shares of Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. $WBD

Rafferty Asset Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD) by 35.6% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 873,805 shares of the company’s stock after selling 482,877 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery were worth $17,065,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 7.1% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 281,214,155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,492,112,000 after purchasing an additional 18,736,600 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 60,091,463 shares of the company’s stock worth $685,798,000 after buying an additional 551,548 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Warner Bros. Discovery by 2.8% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 44,574,492 shares of the company’s stock valued at $510,824,000 after buying an additional 1,233,195 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Warner Bros. Discovery during the second quarter worth about $306,848,000. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in Warner Bros. Discovery by 4,639.8% in the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 22,788,847 shares of the company’s stock worth $445,066,000 after acquiring an additional 22,308,046 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 59.95% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Lori C. Locke sold 4,122 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.92, for a total transaction of $119,208.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 100,962 shares in the company, valued at $2,919,821.04. The trade was a 3.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels sold 242,994 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.50, for a total transaction of $7,168,323.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 918,940 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,108,730. The trade was a 20.91% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 257,116 shares of company stock worth $7,546,331 in the last ninety days. 1.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Warner Bros. Discovery Stock Down 2.2%

Shares of NASDAQ WBD opened at $28.17 on Friday. Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. has a 52 week low of $7.52 and a 52 week high of $30.00. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $28.37 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $22.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. The company has a market cap of $69.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 97.14 and a beta of 1.64.

Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.10) earnings per share 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 1.99%. The company had revenue of $9.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.33 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.20) earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. will post -4.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on WBD. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from $21.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Moffett Nathanson increased their price objective on Warner Bros. Discovery from $26.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley set a $29.00 target price on Warner Bros. Discovery in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research report on Friday. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Warner Bros. Discovery from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $25.39.

Key Headlines Impacting Warner Bros. Discovery

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

• Positive Sentiment: Paramount’s acquisition agreement announced — a $31-per-share cash deal values WBD at roughly $110 billion and is now a formal merger agreement, creating a clear path to a cash exit for shareholders. PR Newswire
• Positive Sentiment: Netflix exits the bidding — Netflix declined to raise its offer after Paramount’s $31 bid was declared superior, reducing takeover uncertainty and making a Paramount close more likely. Reuters
• Positive Sentiment: EU approval expected to be manageable — sources tell Reuters the deal is likely to clear EU antitrust scrutiny with only minor divestments if required, lowering one regulatory hurdle. Reuters
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst reactions mixed — several firms updated ratings/targets (TD Cowen raised its PT to $26 but kept a hold; Deutsche Bank moved to hold with a $31 PT), reflecting divided views on deal certainty and standalone fundamentals. MarketScreener (TD Cowen) MarketScreener (Deutsche Bank)
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 results disappointed — WBD posted a loss per share and revenue declined ~6% year/year, missing EPS expectations and underscoring legacy TV/studio weakness despite streaming growth. That weak print amplifies uncertainty around valuation and growth prospects. WBD press release / earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Employee and synergy risk — CNBC reports WBD staff fear layoffs if Paramount pursues roughly $6B of cost synergies; job cuts and integration execution could create operational disruption and headline risk. CNBC
• Negative Sentiment: Political/regulatory friction remains — California and other political actors could still slow the deal; state-level opposition and broader antitrust scrutiny remain possible roadblocks. Reuters
• Negative Sentiment: Options and sentiment signal volatility — today saw an unusually large spike in put option volume, indicating elevated hedging/speculative bearish positioning even as a cash deal price anchors the stock.

About Warner Bros. Discovery

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.