Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 114,380,000 shares, a drop of 17.6% from the August 15th total of 138,800,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 31,110,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.7 days. Approximately 5.2% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Warner Bros. Discovery Trading Up 10.8 %

Shares of WBD opened at $8.49 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $7.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $7.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.76. Warner Bros. Discovery has a fifty-two week low of $6.64 and a fifty-two week high of $12.70. The firm has a market cap of $20.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.85 and a beta of 1.48.

Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported ($4.07) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.18) by ($3.89). Warner Bros. Discovery had a negative return on equity of 27.28% and a negative net margin of 29.47%. The company had revenue of $9.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.51) earnings per share. Warner Bros. Discovery’s revenue was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Warner Bros. Discovery will post -4.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WBD has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped 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 note on Thursday, August 8th. Macquarie reduced their price objective on Warner Bros. Discovery from $9.00 to $8.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 12th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Warner Bros. Discovery from $10.00 to $8.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on Warner Bros. Discovery from $9.00 to $8.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Warner Bros. Discovery has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $10.93.

Institutional Trading of Warner Bros. Discovery

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery by 17.0% in the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 25,534,218 shares of the company’s stock worth $290,579,000 after buying an additional 3,710,343 shares during the period. Sessa Capital IM L.P. increased its position in Warner Bros. Discovery by 28.8% during the 2nd quarter. Sessa Capital IM L.P. now owns 22,784,883 shares of the company’s stock valued at $169,520,000 after purchasing an additional 5,100,000 shares during the period. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 20,855,527 shares of the company’s stock worth $155,165,000 after purchasing an additional 235,192 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery during the 4th quarter valued at about $198,916,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in Warner Bros. Discovery by 5.3% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 14,192,814 shares of the company’s stock valued at $105,595,000 after acquiring an additional 719,869 shares in the last quarter. 59.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Warner Bros. Discovery

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.