Warner Bros. Discovery Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:WBD)

Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Traders bought 63,657 put options on the stock. This is an increase of 18% compared to the average volume of 53,930 put options.

Warner Bros. Discovery Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:WBD traded up $0.11 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $7.91. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 23,802,916 shares, compared to its average volume of 27,364,744. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $8.40 and a 200-day moving average of $9.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.30 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.09 and a beta of 1.51. Warner Bros. Discovery has a 12-month low of $7.34 and a 12-month high of $14.76.

Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 23rd. The company reported ($0.16) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.11) by ($0.05). Warner Bros. Discovery had a negative return on equity of 3.48% and a negative net margin of 7.57%. The business had revenue of $10.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.42 EPS. Warner Bros. Discovery’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Warner Bros. Discovery will post -0.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on WBD shares. Macquarie cut their price target on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from $16.00 to $14.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Warner Bros. Discovery from $14.00 to $10.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Redburn Atlantic lowered Warner Bros. Discovery from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $11.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered shares of Warner Bros. Discovery from a “peer perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $7.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $13.83.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WBD. Delta Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in the first quarter worth approximately $153,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Warner Bros. Discovery by 14.0% in the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,741,308 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,932,000 after acquiring an additional 336,794 shares in the last quarter. Private Management Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 14.2% in the 1st quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 3,894,579 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000,000 after purchasing an additional 485,094 shares in the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 0.7% in the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 2,496,912 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,798,000 after purchasing an additional 18,318 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Patton Fund Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 118.4% during the first quarter. Patton Fund Management Inc. now owns 26,739 shares of the company’s stock valued at $233,000 after purchasing an additional 14,494 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 59.95% of the company’s stock.

Warner Bros. Discovery Company Profile

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.