Performance Shrinking Yet Still "Hot": Warner Bros (WBD.US) Q4 Revenue and Profit Both Decline, Paramount and Netflix Bidding War Heating Up

K-LinePoet · 2026-03-22T11:12:57+00:00

Warner Bros. Discovery's fourth-quarter sales and profits both declined, with revenue down 5.6% year-over-year to $9.46 billion, though it exceeded expectations. Television networks and studio revenues decreased significantly, while streaming business grew slightly. The company is facing acquisition pressure, with Paramount raising its bid to $31 per share, challenging the Netflix deal. Warner Bros. is struggling to cope with competition and debt crisis, with stock price recovering recently.

K-LinePoet

2026-03-22 11:12:57

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Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD.US) reported declines in both revenue and profit for the fourth quarter. This further highlights the significant challenges the media giant faces as it weighs acquisition offers from competitors. The earnings report showed that Warner Bros. Q4 revenue decreased by 5.6% year-over-year to $9.46 billion. Adjusted EBITDA shrank to $2.22 billion.

Despite this, both figures exceeded Wall Street expectations. The company posted a loss of $0.10 per share, compared to a loss of $0.20 per share in the same period last year.

Affected by declines in advertising sales and distribution revenue, Warner Bros.’ television network business, including CNN, TNT, and HGTV, saw revenue drop 12% to $4.2 billion. Adjusted EBITDA fell 27% to $1.41 billion.

Warner Bros. Studios reported revenue down 13% to $3.18 billion, below Wall Street’s forecast of $3.37 billion. Revenue from movies, TV shows, and video games all declined, with profits decreasing by 23%.

Streaming revenue grew 5% to $2.79 billion, driven by growth in advertising, though profits slightly declined. Services like HBO Max added 3.5 million new subscribers this quarter, bringing the total global subscribers to 131.6 million.

Amid this earnings release, a fierce bidding war for this iconic Hollywood studio is intensifying. Paramount (PSKY.US) raised its bid for Warner Bros. to $31 per share over the past week, aiming to block the current deal with Netflix (NFLX.US).

Warner Bros. is currently evaluating whether this new bid is more attractive than the existing offer—selling its studio and HBO Max business to Netflix at $27.75 per share. If the board approves Paramount’s new bid, Netflix will have four days to respond—either by increasing its offer or withdrawing.

This season, Warner Bros. lost its U.S. media rights to the NBA after the league signed new agreements with Disney, Comcast, and Amazon, which impacted its TV ratings. Under the terms of its deal with Netflix, the company plans to spin off its cable network as an independent entity in the third quarter.

Warner Bros. Discovery was formed four years ago through a merger. The company has been striving to compete with streaming rivals like Netflix and to reverse the decline in traditional cable TV audiences. Due to over $32 billion in debt, its stock has been depressed for a long time, but since Paramount announced its acquisition interest last September, the stock has rebounded 130%.

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