Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) Shares Gap Up on Strong Earnings

Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $8.38, but opened at $9.02. Warner Bros. Discovery shares last traded at $9.52, with a volume of 15,441,142 shares trading hands.

The company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.07) by $0.12. Warner Bros. Discovery had a negative net margin of 29.47% and a negative return on equity of 27.28%. The firm had revenue of $9.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.79 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.17) EPS. The company’s revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on WBD. Raymond James upped their target price on Warner Bros. Discovery from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from $9.00 to $7.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Warner Bros. Discovery from $10.00 to $8.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 9th. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from $15.00 to $14.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $9.00 price objective on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a report on Friday, September 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Warner Bros. Discovery has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $10.55.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Warner Bros. Discovery

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WBD. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp increased its stake in Warner Bros. Discovery by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 458,382 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,002,000 after buying an additional 5,830 shares during the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC increased its holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery by 3.5% during the first quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 79,751 shares of the company’s stock worth $696,000 after buying an additional 2,713 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in Warner Bros. Discovery during the first quarter worth $457,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Warner Bros. Discovery by 124.5% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 52,891 shares of the company’s stock valued at $462,000 after acquiring an additional 29,330 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 380,578 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,322,000 after purchasing an additional 3,818 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.95% of the company’s stock.

Warner Bros. Discovery Price Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average is $7.90 and its 200-day moving average is $7.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.91 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06.

Warner Bros. Discovery Company 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.