Warner Bros. Discovery climbs amid reports it’s rejected takeover offers around $24 per share
Shares of Warner Bros. Discovery are trading up on Wednesday as a bidding war for the HBO and CNN parent company heats up.
According to CNBC, WBD has now rejected three Paramount Skydance offers. The latest was said to be for close to $24 per share (about a 15% premium from the stock’s level as of Wednesday morning and nearly double where it was trading before reports of a potential takeover surfaced in September) with 80% in cash. Yesterday afternoon, Reuters reported that WBD’s board rejected the $24 offer on Tuesday.
WBD, which said on Tuesday it was open to a sale and that there are multiple interested parties, climbed on the latest update. The stock was up more than 4% after the market opened before its gains narrowed.
According to reports, Paramount remains the most interested potential buyer, but Comcast, Amazon, and Netflix are also circling.
On Netflix’s earnings call after the bell Tuesday, the streamer’s co-CEO, Ted Sarandos, reiterated that the company has “no interest in owning legacy media networks.” Still, industry experts have speculated that a sale of WBD’s streaming and film studios business — which it previously intended to spin off — could be on the table, leaving Netflix in the hunt.
WBD, which said on Tuesday it was open to a sale and that there are multiple interested parties, climbed on the latest update. The stock was up more than 4% after the market opened before its gains narrowed.
According to reports, Paramount remains the most interested potential buyer, but Comcast, Amazon, and Netflix are also circling.
On Netflix’s earnings call after the bell Tuesday, the streamer’s co-CEO, Ted Sarandos, reiterated that the company has “no interest in owning legacy media networks.” Still, industry experts have speculated that a sale of WBD’s streaming and film studios business — which it previously intended to spin off — could be on the table, leaving Netflix in the hunt.
