Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. $WBD

Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC lowered its holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD) by 75.3% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 66,632 shares of the company’s stock after selling 203,144 shares during the quarter. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery were worth $1,301,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. TriaGen Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Warner Bros. Discovery during the 3rd quarter valued at $443,000. Penserra Capital Management LLC raised its stake 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 valued at $710,000 after purchasing an additional 61,857 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 7.4% during the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 19,463,234 shares of the company’s stock worth $223,049,000 after purchasing an additional 1,333,005 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB lifted its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 3.7% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,065,445 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,808,000 after purchasing an additional 37,986 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH grew its stake in Warner Bros. Discovery by 1.0% in the second quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 1,572,301 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,019,000 after purchasing an additional 16,006 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.95% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on WBD. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Warner Bros. Discovery from $13.00 to $14.75 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley set a $29.00 price objective on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from $23.50 to $27.75 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from $21.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Arete Research reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $31.25 price objective on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, sixteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $25.39.

Key Stories Impacting Warner Bros. Discovery

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

• Positive Sentiment: Paramount’s acquisition agreement announced — a $31-per-share cash deal values WBD at roughly $110 billion and is now a formal merger agreement, creating a clear path to a cash exit for shareholders. PR Newswire
• Positive Sentiment: Netflix exits the bidding — Netflix declined to raise its offer after Paramount’s $31 bid was declared superior, reducing takeover uncertainty and making a Paramount close more likely. Reuters
• Positive Sentiment: EU approval expected to be manageable — sources tell Reuters the deal is likely to clear EU antitrust scrutiny with only minor divestments if required, lowering one regulatory hurdle. Reuters
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst reactions mixed — several firms updated ratings/targets (TD Cowen raised its PT to $26 but kept a hold; Deutsche Bank moved to hold with a $31 PT), reflecting divided views on deal certainty and standalone fundamentals. MarketScreener (TD Cowen) MarketScreener (Deutsche Bank)
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 results disappointed — WBD posted a loss per share and revenue declined ~6% year/year, missing EPS expectations and underscoring legacy TV/studio weakness despite streaming growth. That weak print amplifies uncertainty around valuation and growth prospects. WBD press release / earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Employee and synergy risk — CNBC reports WBD staff fear layoffs if Paramount pursues roughly $6B of cost synergies; job cuts and integration execution could create operational disruption and headline risk. CNBC
• Negative Sentiment: Political/regulatory friction remains — California and other political actors could still slow the deal; state-level opposition and broader antitrust scrutiny remain possible roadblocks. Reuters
• Negative Sentiment: Options and sentiment signal volatility — today saw an unusually large spike in put option volume, indicating elevated hedging/speculative bearish positioning even as a cash deal price anchors the stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels sold 242,994 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.50, for a total value of $7,168,323.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 918,940 shares in the company, valued at $27,108,730. This trade represents a 20.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Lori C. Locke sold 4,122 shares of Warner Bros. Discovery stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.92, for a total value of $119,208.24. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 100,962 shares in the company, valued at $2,919,821.04. The trade was a 3.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 257,116 shares of company stock worth $7,546,331. Corporate insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Warner Bros. Discovery Stock Performance

Shares of WBD opened at $28.17 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $28.37 and a 200-day moving average of $22.66. The company has a market cap of $69.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 97.14 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07. Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. has a 1 year low of $7.52 and a 1 year high of $30.00.

Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.10) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.09 by ($0.19). The firm had revenue of $9.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.33 billion. Warner Bros. Discovery had a net margin of 1.95% and a return on equity of 1.99%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.20) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. will post -4.33 earnings per share for the current year.

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.