Headwind from HBO Max deal steals spotlight from Warner Bros. Discovery’s positive Q2 report

Shares of Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) have given up their premarket gains and are currently down in early open market trading on Thursday. The company reported a mixed second quarter report with a revenue miss, a surprise profit, and a reiterated forecast.

While analysts view the results to be good enough, which was driven by studio business strength, the company’s warning that the restructuring of the HBO Max U.S. distribution deal would be a temporary headwind to revenue growth, along with the lack of new details on the post-split companies, is driving uncertainty among investors and partly weighing on stock.

WBD shares were down 6.3% at $11.99 by 11:27 am ET on the NASDAQ.

The media conglomerate said it saw a “modest negative impact” on Q2 domestic ARPU and distribution revenues from the restructured U.S. HBO Max deal.

As a result, it anticipates a “more pronounced impact” during the second half of 2025 and expects distribution revenue growth to be in the low single-digit range starting in Q3. The impact will linger into the first half of 2026.

Research firms on Wall Street, however, held a positive opinion on the Q3 print and continued to maintain their respective investment ratings.

Citi noted that results showed upside on key metrics; Wolfe said the results show “better EBITDA results across all segments.”

KeyBanc, while highlighting that “outperformance was broad-based across segments” during the quarter, was disappointed that the adjusted EBITDA guide was maintained.

Bank of America said that the company’s performance was mixed by segment but overall was better than expected in Q2. Wells Fargo praised WBD’s EBITDA beats across all segments.