Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Increases Position in Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lifted its holdings in shares of Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD) by 12.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 189,126 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 20,892 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery were worth $1,407,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Family Firm Inc. acquired a new position in Warner Bros. Discovery in the second quarter worth about $26,000. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Warner Bros. Discovery in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. OFI Invest Asset Management boosted its stake in Warner Bros. Discovery by 45.9% in the second quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management now owns 3,879 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 1,221 shares during the period. First Financial Corp IN boosted its stake in Warner Bros. Discovery by 577.4% in the first quarter. First Financial Corp IN now owns 3,387 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 2,887 shares during the period. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. acquired a new position in Warner Bros. Discovery in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 59.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Warner Bros. Discovery Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WBD traded up $0.11 during trading on Friday, hitting $7.84. The company had a trading volume of 25,025,142 shares, compared to its average volume of 29,095,063. The company has a market cap of $19.21 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.32 and a beta of 1.49. Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. has a 52 week low of $6.64 and a 52 week high of $13.31. The business’s 50-day moving average is $7.71 and its 200 day moving average is $8.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.82.

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). The company had revenue of $9.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.07 billion. Warner Bros. Discovery had a negative net margin of 7.45% and a negative return on equity of 6.58%. Warner Bros. Discovery’s quarterly revenue was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.51) EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. will post -0.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on WBD shares. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Warner Bros. Discovery in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Barclays decreased their target price on Warner Bros. Discovery from $9.00 to $8.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Benchmark decreased their target price on Warner Bros. Discovery from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price 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, Moffett Nathanson reduced their price objective on Warner Bros. Discovery from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $11.25.

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.