Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD – Get Free Report)’s share price reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday after Morgan Stanley raised their price target on the stock from $29.00 to $31.00. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Warner Bros. Discovery traded as high as $30.92 and last traded at $30.80, with a volume of 234051856 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $27.80.
A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on WBD. Barclays began coverage on Warner Bros. Discovery in a research note on Thursday, September 17th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $29.00 target price on the stock. Seaport Research Partners lowered Warner Bros. Discovery from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Freedom Capital raised Warner Bros. Discovery from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Zacks Research upgraded Warner Bros. Discovery from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Huber Research raised Warner Bros. Discovery from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Warner Bros. Discovery has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $28.34.
Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on WBD
Insider Activity at Warner Bros. Discovery
Key Headlines Impacting Warner Bros. Discovery
Here are the key news stories impacting Warner Bros. Discovery this week:
- Positive Sentiment: State antitrust lawsuit settled: Paramount reached a settlement with attorneys general from 12 states, clearing what had been described as the final major legal hurdle to the merger. Management reportedly expects closing in roughly two weeks, potentially around September 30; delays could trigger a fee of approximately $650 million per quarter. Key terms of Paramount’s Warner Bros Discovery settlement with US states
- Positive Sentiment: Merger-related confidence: Reports say Paramount is considering adding Elon Musk to the investor group backing the acquisition. While unconfirmed, the possibility could support perceptions that Paramount is strengthening its financial backing for the deal. Paramount weighs adding Musk to investor group backing Warner deal
- Positive Sentiment: Analyst target increase: Morgan Stanley raised its WBD price target from $29 to $31 while maintaining an “equal weight” rating, suggesting limited additional upside but acknowledging the stock’s improved near-term outlook.
- Neutral Sentiment: Settlement terms include concessions: The agreement reportedly involves production and labor-related commitments. A Trump Justice Department official said the settlement added no new antitrust-related commitments, but the comments may not end political and regulatory scrutiny. Trump DOJ official comments on Paramount-Warner Bros. settlement
- Negative Sentiment: High leverage and execution risk: Analysts expect the combined company to carry more than $77 billion in debt, while insiders reportedly anticipate significant layoffs and technology-stack conflicts after closing. These concerns could limit the merger’s financial benefits. Merged Paramount-Warner Bros. streaming and debt analysis
- Negative Sentiment: Political opposition remains: New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani criticized the transaction as allegedly corrupt, adding headline and reputational risk even as the legal settlement advances the deal. New York mayor criticizes Paramount-WBD merger
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Warner Bros. Discovery
Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 0.7% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 128,364,674 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,422,202,000 after buying an additional 934,964 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 66,597,575 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,912,634,000 after acquiring an additional 1,028,346 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,123,807,000. HBK Investments L P lifted its position in Warner Bros. Discovery by 15.9% during the second quarter. HBK Investments L P now owns 18,965,932 shares of the company’s stock valued at $505,632,000 after purchasing an additional 2,604,732 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 21.9% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 16,616,949 shares of the company’s stock worth $456,301,000 after acquiring an additional 2,980,900 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 59.95% of the company’s stock.
Warner Bros. Discovery Trading Down 0.2%
The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $27.62 and a 200-day simple moving average of $27.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $77.23 billion, a P/E ratio of -24.22 and a beta of 1.57.
Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.14) by $0.20. The business had revenue of $8.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.25 billion. Warner Bros. Discovery had a negative return on equity of 8.91% and a negative net margin of 8.77%.The business’s quarterly revenue was down 11.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.63 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. will post -1.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.
About Warner Bros. Discovery
Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc is a global media and entertainment company that develops, produces and distributes television, film and digital content. Its portfolio includes Warner Bros. film and television studios, HBO, CNN, Discovery, TLC, HGTV, Food Network, TNT Sports and other well-known brands.
The company operates streaming services including Max, which features HBO programming, Warner Bros. films, original series and other entertainment content, and discovery+, which focuses on lifestyle, documentary and nonfiction programming.
Featured Stories
- Five stocks we like better than Warner Bros. Discovery
- Chips to Bots: Qualcomm’s Agentic AI Breakout
- Ciena Fell 40%—Now One Analyst Sees 50% Upside
- Energy Transfer Taps the AI Power Boom
- Viking’s Obesity Edge May Be Staying Power, Not Weight Loss
Receive News & Ratings for Warner Bros. Discovery Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Warner Bros. Discovery and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
