Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) CEO David Zaslav Sells 194,999 Shares

Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD) CEO David Zaslav sold 194,999 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.02, for a total value of $5,463,871.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 6,807,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $190,758,310.68. This represents a 2.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

David Zaslav also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, August 13th, David Zaslav sold 773,173 shares of Warner Bros. Discovery stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.01, for a total value of $21,656,575.73.

Warner Bros. Discovery Stock Up 0.9%

WBD opened at $27.99 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $26.54 and a 200-day moving average of $27.17. The company has a market capitalization of $70.17 billion, a P/E ratio of -22.04 and a beta of 1.55. Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $11.25 and a fifty-two week high of $30.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.78.

Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.14) by $0.20. Warner Bros. Discovery had a negative net margin of 8.77% and a negative return on equity of 8.91%. The business had revenue of $8.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.25 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.63 earnings per share. Warner Bros. Discovery’s revenue was down 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. will post -1.04 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Warner Bros. Discovery

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of 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 valued at $232,000 after acquiring an additional 367 shares during the last quarter. Krilogy Financial LLC raised its stake in Warner Bros. Discovery by 2.6% during the first quarter. Krilogy Financial LLC now owns 14,809 shares of the company’s stock worth $406,000 after acquiring an additional 369 shares in the last quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 386 shares during the last quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 395 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Optas LLC boosted its stake in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Optas LLC now owns 15,529 shares of the company’s stock valued at $426,000 after purchasing an additional 409 shares in the last quarter. 59.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Warner Bros. Discovery News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merger expectations are supporting WBD. Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount Skydance shares are rallying as recent market activity suggests the Hollywood megamerger’s closing odds may be improving. Paramount’s reported willingness to consider selling CNN to address antitrust concerns could help resolve a key obstacle. Paramount and Warner Bros. Stocks Are Rallying
• Positive Sentiment: Warner Bros.’ “The End of Oak Street” is targeting as much as $48 million globally in its debut. A strong theatrical opening could provide a modest near-term boost to studio and film-distribution sentiment, although the impact on WBD’s overall financial results is likely limited. The End of Oak Street targets global debut
• Neutral Sentiment: The merger remains tied up in antitrust litigation. The parties have outlined discovery and other pretrial deadlines, with the legal process potentially extending toward a March 2027 trial. The long timeline keeps merger-related volatility elevated and delays certainty for WBD shareholders. Paramount-WBD antitrust trial schedule
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry groups including the DGA and IATSE are urging a faster resolution to the Paramount-WBD legal standoff, while Teamsters members are protesting Paramount over merger-related commitments. The developments increase political and labor pressure but do not yet establish the transaction’s outcome. Teamsters protest Paramount over merger
• Neutral Sentiment: WBD announced incubator productions for Food Network and discovery+, supporting its content pipeline but offering limited immediate financial impact. WBD Food Network and discovery+ productions
• Negative Sentiment: Large insider sales may weigh on investor confidence. Director Kenneth Lowe sold 120,000 shares for approximately $3.24 million, and Gerhard Zeiler sold 591,038 shares worth about $15.99 million. The filings do not explain the motivations, but the sizable reductions can be viewed as a negative sentiment signal. Gerhard Zeiler WBD share sale

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Guggenheim restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. KeyCorp reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Freedom Capital upgraded Warner Bros. Discovery from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Huber Research raised Warner Bros. Discovery from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Warner Bros. Discovery has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $27.69.

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.