Mackay Shields LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. $WBD

Mackay Shields LLC reduced its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD) by 43.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 226,250 shares of the company’s stock after selling 173,750 shares during the period. Mackay Shields LLC’s holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery were worth $6,521,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 12.4% in the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,425 shares of the company’s stock valued at $99,000 after purchasing an additional 378 shares in the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC grew its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 20.2% in the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 2,494 shares of the company’s stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 419 shares in the last quarter. Optas LLC grew its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Optas LLC now owns 15,120 shares of the company’s stock valued at $436,000 after purchasing an additional 435 shares in the last quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 6,095 shares of the company’s stock valued at $176,000 after purchasing an additional 436 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Concord Wealth Partners grew its position in Warner Bros. Discovery by 49.9% in the third quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 1,321 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 440 shares during the period. 59.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on WBD. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research report on Friday. Moffett Nathanson upgraded Warner Bros. Discovery from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, March 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on Warner Bros. Discovery from $23.50 to $27.75 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Huber Research cut Warner Bros. Discovery from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research note on Friday, February 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $26.30.

Warner Bros. Discovery Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ WBD opened at $27.07 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $67.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 93.35 and a beta of 1.63. 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 $8.06 and a 12-month high of $30.00. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $27.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $26.10.

Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.09 by ($0.19). The company had revenue of $9.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.33 billion. Warner Bros. Discovery had a net margin of 1.95% and a return on equity of 1.98%. The firm’s revenue was down 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.20) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. will post -0.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Fazal F. Merchant sold 35,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.48, for a total value of $961,800.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 95,539 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,625,411.72. This trade represents a 26.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Paul A. Gould sold 600,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.35, for a total value of $16,410,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 244,357 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,683,163.95. The trade was a 71.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 8,206,827 shares of company stock valued at $230,674,025. 1.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Warner Bros. Discovery News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Shareholders overwhelmingly approved the merger agreement with Paramount Skydance, removing a major corporate-governance obstacle and increasing the likelihood the $81B transaction will close — a primary catalyst that supports a takeover premium and M&A re-rating. Warner Bros. Discovery Stockholders Approve Transaction with Paramount Skydance
• Neutral Sentiment: WBD set the date and time for its Q1 2026 earnings call (Wednesday, May 6, after market close) — a scheduled catalyst that could drive near-term volatility depending on revenue/profit guidance and merger-related commentary. Warner Bros. Discovery Updates the Date and Time of its First Quarter 2026 Earnings Call
• Neutral Sentiment: Shareholders voted down the proposed exit/pay package for CEO David Zaslav and other executives — a sign of shareholder activism and governance friction that could complicate management transitions or retention but reduces a perceived large costs tied to the deal. WBD shareholders approve the Paramount mega-merger — but reject David Zaslav’s pay package
• Neutral Sentiment: WBD shares showed recent weakness versus the broader market, underscoring near-term volatility as investors price the merger, integration risk and upcoming earnings. Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) Falls More Steeply Than Broader Market
• Negative Sentiment: Protests and political criticism claim the merger could threaten jobs (notably in NYC) and draw public/political pushback — potential PR/regulatory headaches that could slow integration or invite stricter conditions. Zohran Mamdani rips Warner Bros. Discovery’s Paramount merger
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that competitors (reportedly Netflix) have been quietly trying to interfere with the merger raise the prospect of industry pushback or competitive maneuvering that could complicate closing or increase deal costs. Netflix reportedly quietly interfering with Warner Bros.-Paramount merger
• Negative Sentiment: Ongoing protests and media scrutiny create reputational and execution risk during the integration phase, which could pressure shares if investors fear delays, divestitures or regulatory remedies. Flurry Of Protests As WBD Shareholders Set To Vote On Paramount Merger

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.