Independent Franchise Partners LLP Boosts Position in Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. $WBD

Independent Franchise Partners LLP increased its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD) by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,107,132 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 69,208 shares during the quarter. Warner Bros. Discovery makes up about 1.7% of Independent Franchise Partners LLP’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Independent Franchise Partners LLP’s holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery were worth $255,982,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WBD. Concord Wealth Partners grew its stake in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 49.9% in the 3rd quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 1,321 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 440 shares during the period. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 152.1% during the 3rd quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 1,404 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 847 shares during the last quarter. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Grove Bank & Trust raised its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 66.5% during the 3rd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 1,690 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 675 shares during the period. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery by 1,242.2% in the third quarter. Crews Bank & Trust now owns 1,718 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 1,590 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 59.95% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on WBD shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Warner Bros. Discovery from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Moffett Nathanson upgraded Warner Bros. Discovery from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, March 8th. Arete Research reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $31.25 price target on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $31.00 price target on Warner Bros. Discovery and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued an “underperform” rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research report on Friday, February 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $26.30.

Warner Bros. Discovery Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of NASDAQ WBD opened at $27.14 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $67.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 93.59 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. has a 12-month low of $7.52 and a 12-month high of $30.00. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $28.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $23.77.

Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) last issued its 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 1.98%. The firm had revenue of $9.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.33 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.20) EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. will post -4.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Warner Bros. Discovery

In related news, CEO David Zaslav sold 4,004,149 shares of Warner Bros. Discovery stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.26, for a total transaction of $113,157,250.74. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 7,200,627 shares in the company, valued at $203,489,719.02. This trade represents a 35.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Priya Aiyar sold 223,512 shares of Warner Bros. Discovery stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.24, for a total value of $6,311,978.88. Following the sale, the insider owned 919,252 shares in the company, valued at $25,959,676.48. This trade represents a 19.56% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 7,571,827 shares of company stock worth $213,302,225. 1.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.