Becker Capital Management Inc. Sells 216,637 Shares of Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. $WBD

Becker Capital Management Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD) by 45.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 259,385 shares of the company’s stock after selling 216,637 shares during the period. Becker Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery were worth $2,973,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank bought a new position in Warner Bros. Discovery in the second quarter valued at approximately $306,848,000. Independent Franchise Partners LLP bought a new stake in Warner Bros. Discovery in the 1st quarter valued at $140,224,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Warner Bros. Discovery in the 1st quarter worth $96,971,000. Sound Shore Management Inc CT bought a new position in Warner Bros. Discovery during the 2nd quarter worth about $97,951,000. Finally, Apollo Management Holdings L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in the 1st quarter valued at about $65,031,000. 59.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Bruce Campbell sold 150,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.00, for a total transaction of $2,700,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 252,464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,544,352. This represents a 37.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels sold 222,210 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.50, for a total value of $4,999,725.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 918,940 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,676,150. This trade represents a 19.47% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 927,125 shares of company stock worth $18,663,597. 1.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Warner Bros. Discovery Stock Performance

NASDAQ WBD opened at $29.53 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $21.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $15.93. Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. has a 12-month low of $7.52 and a 12-month high of $29.81. The company has a market capitalization of $73.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 155.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90.

Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported ($0.06) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $9.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.17 billion. Warner Bros. Discovery had a net margin of 1.28% and a return on equity of 1.34%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.05 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. will post -4.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $29.50 price objective on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a report on Monday. Cowen downgraded shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. Raymond James Financial increased their target price on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, KeyCorp reissued a “sector weight” rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.35.

Warner Bros. Discovery Profile

Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc operates as a media and entertainment company worldwide. It operates through three segments: Studios, Network, and DTC. The Studios segment produces and releases feature films for initial exhibition in theaters; produces and licenses television programs to its networks and third parties and direct-to-consumer services; distributes films and television programs to various third parties and internal television; and offers streaming services and distribution through the home entertainment market, themed experience licensing, and interactive gaming.