Wiedenfels added that the content strategy has led to over a billion dollars in intercompany profit in the balance sheet.
Warner Bros Discovery Inc.’s (WBD) CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels highlighted the fact that the company’s recent shift in content licensing strategy has affected short-term financial results, but has led to significant long-term value.
“We have taken a short-term financial hit for some real value that’s going to flow through, and that’s a significant amount,” Wiedenfels said during the second-quarter (Q2) earnings call.
Warner Bros Discovery stock traded over 6% lower on Thursday afternoon. On Stocktwits, retail sentiment toward the stock jumped to ‘bullish’ from ‘bearish’ territory the previous day. Message volume shifted to ‘normal’ from ‘low’ levels in 24 hours.
A bullish user called the earnings report ‘the best quarter since Warner bros & Discovery merged.’
Another user commended the report saying it’s ‘phenomenal’.
Wiedenfels added that the content strategy has led to over a billion dollars in intercompany profit in the balance sheet.
The entertainment giant’s CEO, David Zaslav, said that in the second quarter (Q2) and early third quarter (Q3), the company saw major wins, including five consecutive box office hits, record Emmy nominations, a successful launch for the new Superman film, and 3.4 million new HBO Max subscribers.
“As we continue to navigate generational disruption and move forward with splitting into two independent publicly traded companies in 2026, our current momentum will help position both future organizations for long-term success,” added Zaslav.
In late July, Warner Bros. Discovery announced the names and leadership for its upcoming corporate split. The new company, focused on streaming and studios, will be called Warner Bros, and the other one will be called Discovery Global.
The company’s Q2 revenue of $9.81 billion slightly missed the estimate of $9.83 billion, while earnings per share (EPS) of $0.63 exceeded the estimated loss of $0.12, as per Fiscal AI data.
Warner Bros. Discovery stock has gained over 13% in 2025 and 55% in the last 12 months.
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