Stock Traders Purchase High Volume of Warner Bros. Discovery Call Options (NASDAQ:WBD)

Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD) saw some unusual options trading on Monday. Investors acquired 138,382 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 76% compared to the typical volume of 78,823 call options.

Warner Bros. Discovery Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WBD traded up $0.23 during trading on Monday, reaching $26.47. 32,953,016 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 23,218,539. Warner Bros. Discovery has a 12 month low of $9.11 and a 12 month high of $30.00. The firm has a market cap of $66.36 billion, a PE ratio of -37.81 and a beta of 1.54. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $27.18 and a 200-day moving average price of $27.44. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported ($1.17) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.10) by ($1.07). Warner Bros. Discovery had a negative return on equity of 4.77% and a negative net margin of 4.67%.The firm had revenue of $8.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.89 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.18) EPS. The company’s revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Warner Bros. Discovery will post -0.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group lifted their price target on Warner Bros. Discovery from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Moffett Nathanson upgraded Warner Bros. Discovery from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Sunday, March 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Warner Bros. Discovery from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $29.50 to $31.00 in a report on Friday, February 27th. Zacks Research upgraded Warner Bros. Discovery from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Huber Research upgraded Warner Bros. Discovery from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $27.04.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Paul A. Gould sold 600,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.35, for a total value of $16,410,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 244,357 shares in the company, valued at $6,683,163.95. This trade represents a 71.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Fazal F. Merchant sold 35,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.48, for a total value of $961,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 95,539 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,625,411.72. The trade was a 26.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Warner Bros. Discovery

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 283,180,433 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,161,260,000 after buying an additional 1,966,278 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 1.6% in the fourth 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. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,123,807,000. Jericho Capital Asset Management L.P. raised its position in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery by 108.9% in the third quarter. Jericho Capital Asset Management L.P. now owns 35,095,390 shares of the company’s stock valued at $685,413,000 after buying an additional 18,291,865 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 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 in the last quarter. 59.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.