J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG Decreases Stock Position in Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. $WBD

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG trimmed its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD) by 66.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 13,301 shares of the company’s stock after selling 26,494 shares during the quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG’s holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery were worth $365,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WBD. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 283,180,433 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,161,260,000 after purchasing an additional 1,966,278 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 66,597,575 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,912,634,000 after buying an additional 1,028,346 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,123,807,000. Morgan Stanley raised its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 27,462,742 shares of the company’s stock valued at $791,476,000 after buying an additional 1,254,813 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 3.9% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 23,496,725 shares of the company’s stock worth $458,891,000 after buying an additional 876,869 shares in the last quarter. 59.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WBD has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Zacks Research raised Warner Bros. Discovery from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Huber Research upgraded shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $27.04.

Warner Bros. Discovery Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:WBD opened at $27.26 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.34 billion, a PE ratio of -38.94 and a beta of 1.54. Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. has a 1 year low of $10.76 and a 1 year high of $30.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $26.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.50.

Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported ($1.17) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.10) by ($1.07). Warner Bros. Discovery had a negative net margin of 4.67% and a negative return on equity of 4.77%. The business had revenue of $8.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.89 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.18) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. will post -1.07 EPS for the current year.

Trending Headlines about Warner Bros. Discovery

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

• Negative Sentiment: 12 Democratic-led states have filed an antitrust lawsuit to block the Paramount-WBD deal, arguing it would reduce competition, hurt theaters, and potentially raise consumer prices. Plot Twist: 12 States Could Stall the Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery Mega-Merger
• Negative Sentiment: The Writers Guild of America also sued to stop the merger, adding another legal hurdle and increasing the odds of a drawn-out court fight. Hollywood Writers Sue to Block Paramount-Warner Deal
• Neutral Sentiment: Paramount’s lawyers say they still expect the deal to close on schedule, so some investors may be viewing the lawsuits as a delay rather than a full cancellation. Paramount still plans to close WBD merger by end of September despite lawsuit
• Negative Sentiment: Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav sold about $59 million of WBD stock, which may weigh on sentiment even though the sale was reportedly pre-planned. David Zaslav sells $59 million in Warner Bros. Discovery stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Brokerages continue to rate WBD around “Hold,” suggesting analysts are waiting for more clarity on the merger and legal outcome before turning more constructive.

Warner Bros. Discovery Company 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.