WBD stock was trading at $13.32 as of 12:20 PM EDT.
According to its Chief Executive, Chris Licht, it appears like Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) will be making additional job cutbacks as part of attempts to “right-size” CNN.
In an interview with CNBC, Licht stated that one of his duties at CNN is to rebuild the brand’s reputation following a series of setbacks, including the closure of the CNN+ streaming news service just one month after its launch earlier this year. CNN’s earnings are expected to fall below $1 billion this year, to a level not seen since 2016, according to CNBC.
Licht’s evaluation of CNN will occur at the same time as Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) will be laying off more than 1,000 employees by the year’s end, according to unnamed sources reported by CNBC. According to Licht, CNN has not given him any directives regarding how many of those cutbacks will occur.
After Jeff Zucker’s resignation in February, Licht was appointed CEO of CNN. As one of his first acts in his new position, Licht wrote to CNN staff members to urge them to take action in order to win back their viewers’ trust.
Developments around WBD stock position
Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) announced earlier this week that it would incur charges totaling up to $4.3 billion as a result of its restructuring activities. Following the merger of Discovery Inc. and an AT&T Warner Media unit earlier this year, Warner Bros. Discovery announced that it planned to incur up to $4.3 billion in pretax restructuring charges through 2024.
Warner Bros. Discovery stated in a securities statement on Monday that the majority of the charges—between $2 billion and $2.5 billion—are related to restructuring the company’s content business, which included writing down the value of some property and canceling off projects that were in development. On Nov. 3, the business is anticipated to release its third-quarter earnings.
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