Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-six ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $24.75.

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on WBD shares. Guggenheim lowered shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $25.00 to $30.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a report on Monday, December 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and issued a $29.50 price target on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Barclays set a $20.00 price objective on Warner Bros. Discovery in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Moffett Nathanson boosted their target price on Warner Bros. Discovery from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th.

Warner Bros. Discovery Stock Down 1.2%

WBD stock opened at $28.24 on Wednesday. Warner Bros. Discovery has a twelve month low of $7.52 and a twelve month high of $30.00. 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 firm has a market cap of $69.98 billion, a PE ratio of 148.64 and a beta of 1.56. The business has a 50 day moving average of $26.85 and a 200 day moving average of $19.71.

Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported ($0.06) 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 return on equity of 1.34% and a net margin of 1.28%.The company’s revenue was down 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.05 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Warner Bros. Discovery will post -4.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Warner Bros. Discovery

In other Warner Bros. Discovery news, CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels sold 242,994 shares of Warner Bros. Discovery stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.50, for a total value of $7,168,323.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 918,940 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,108,730. The trade was a 20.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Lori C. Locke sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.62, for a total value of $138,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 110,084 shares in the company, valued at $3,040,520.08. The trade was a 4.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 489,326 shares of company stock valued at $12,781,456 over the last three months. 1.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WBD. TriaGen Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Warner Bros. Discovery during the third quarter worth approximately $443,000. Bfsg LLC lifted its stake in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 11.2% in the 2nd quarter. Bfsg LLC now owns 156,906 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,798,000 after purchasing an additional 15,786 shares during the last quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 29,882.6% in the 2nd quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 62,064 shares of the company’s stock worth $710,000 after purchasing an additional 61,857 shares during the period. Country Club Bank increased its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 54.3% during the 2nd quarter. Country Club Bank now owns 502,878 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,683,000 after purchasing an additional 176,994 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 7.4% during the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 19,463,234 shares of the company’s stock valued at $223,049,000 after purchasing an additional 1,333,005 shares during the last quarter. 59.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Warner Bros. Discovery

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

• Positive Sentiment: WBD board backs amended all‑cash Netflix bid, which increases deal certainty and shortens the path to closing — reducing execution risk for the sale of studios/HBO streaming assets. Reuters: Netflix submits amended all-cash offer for Warner Bros, wins board support
• Neutral Sentiment: The amended deal is an all‑cash offer valuing the assets at roughly $27.75 per WBD share (the aggregate purchase figure is widely reported around $82.7B). Netflix and WBD say Discovery Global is excluded; WBD also disclosed financial detail on its soon‑to‑be spun cable networks, which clarifies the break‑up value but doesn’t change the transaction price. Variety: Netflix Upgrades Warner Bros. Deal to All Cash; Shareholders to Vote
• Neutral Sentiment: Netflix executives are actively promoting the deal around the company’s Q4 earnings, making the takeover a focal point of investor calls — Netflix’s results and tone could shift market sentiment around the transaction. Deadline: Netflix Execs Keep Stumping For Warner Bros. Deal
• Negative Sentiment: Macro risk‑off flows tied to headlines ahead of President Trump’s Davos appearance pushed major indices sharply lower, amplifying declines in media and tech stocks and contributing to WBD’s drop despite deal news. Zacks: Markets Switch to “Risk-Off” Ahead of Trump at Davos
• Negative Sentiment: The all‑cash $27.75/share fixes the sale price and may cap upside for WBD holders who hoped for a higher negotiated outcome; reports that Netflix’s stock and financing considerations remain under pressure could influence perceptions of deal financing and timing. NYPost: Why Netflix’s revised all-cash-bid for WBD might not be good for shareholders

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.