Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) Upgraded by Moffett Nathanson to Strong-Buy Rating

Moffett Nathanson upgraded shares of Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report report published on Sunday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on WBD. Weiss Ratings upgraded Warner Bros. Discovery from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Warner Bros. Discovery from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price target for the company from $29.50 to $31.00 in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on shares of 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $29.00 target price on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a report on Thursday, December 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $26.30.

Warner Bros. Discovery Price Performance

Warner Bros. Discovery stock opened at $27.75 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. Warner Bros. Discovery has a 52-week low of $7.52 and a 52-week high of $30.00. The firm has a market cap of $68.76 billion, a PE ratio of 95.69 and a beta of 1.60. The company’s 50 day moving average is $28.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $23.50.

Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.10) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.09 by ($0.19). Warner Bros. Discovery had a return on equity of 1.98% and a net margin of 1.95%.The business had revenue of $9.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.33 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.20) EPS. The business’s revenue was down 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Warner Bros. Discovery will post -4.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Warner Bros. Discovery

In other news, CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels sold 374,323 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.05, for a total transaction of $10,499,760.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 663,380 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,607,809. This represents a 36.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Gerhard Zeiler sold 600,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.02, for a total value of $16,812,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 672,649 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,847,624.98. The trade was a 47.15% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 7,777,159 shares of company stock worth $219,427,326 over the last three months. Company insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Warner Bros. Discovery

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 283,180,433 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,161,260,000 after purchasing an additional 1,966,278 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 66,597,575 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,912,634,000 after buying an additional 1,028,346 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 44,574,492 shares of the company’s stock valued at $510,824,000 after buying an additional 1,233,195 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in the 4th quarter valued at $1,123,807,000. Finally, Jericho Capital Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in Warner Bros. Discovery by 108.9% during the 3rd quarter. Jericho Capital Asset Management L.P. now owns 35,095,390 shares of the company’s stock worth $685,413,000 after acquiring an additional 18,291,865 shares in the last quarter. 59.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Warner Bros. Discovery

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

• Positive Sentiment: Paramount Skydance’s winning bid and renewed investor support (including reported Tencent funding) increases deal certainty, which tends to lift takeover targets like WBD because it narrows the path to a premium exit for shareholders. Tencent Is Said to Be Back On Paramount-Warner Bros Deal With Fresh Funding
• Positive Sentiment: Market chatter reports a structure that could include a passive Tencent investment to support the Paramount‑WBD deal, which improves financing visibility and regulatory odds for the $110B transaction. Market Chatter: Warner Bros. Discovery, Paramount Skydance, Discuss Passive Tencent Investment for Acquisition Deal
• Neutral Sentiment: Wells Fargo resumed/initiated coverage on WBD with an Equal Weight rating and a $31 price target, implying modest upside from current levels but not a strong buy signal; this provides a near‑term benchmark for investors. Wells Fargo resumes coverage / Benzinga summary
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports that former President Trump bought Netflix and WBD bonds amid the bidding war add media and political noise but are unlikely to change fundamentals; they mainly attract headlines around the deal dynamics. Trump bought Netflix and Warner Bros bonds at height of bidding war with Paramount
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple insider sales disclosed in recent filings (including large blocks by executives) raise governance and signaling concerns; heavy insider selling often weighs on sentiment for stocks under takeover scrutiny. Insider Selling: Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) Insider Sells
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst moves and commentary are mixed-to-cautious — MoffettNathanson cut to Hold and a veteran exec warned that a Paramount takeover could lead to reduced content output, which could hurt long‑term streaming economics and growth expectations. Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) Cut to Hold at Moffett Nathanson Veteran media exec: Paramount’s acquisition … will likely result in reduced output

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.