- Warner Bros Discovery, Inc WBD will likely incur $3.2 billion – $4.3 billion in pretax restructuring charges through 2024 from a cost-cutting effort following the merger of Discovery Inc and AT&T Inc’s T WarnerMedia unit.
- Most of the charges of $2.0 billion – $2.5 billion were likely related to restructuring the company’s content operations, including writing down the value of some content and killing off projects in development.
- The new management struggled to accomplish its commitment of $3 billion in cost savings through the merger of Discovery with WarnerMedia, the Wall Street Journal reports.
- Also Read: Warner Bros. Discovery Analyst Slashes 3Q Estimates Citing FX Headwinds, Tougher Comps
- WBD also battled a heavy debt burden.
- At the end of the second quarter, WBD had a debt of $53 billion.
- There have been significant layoffs since the deal closed. It slashed 26% of all positions at Warner Bros. Television in October.
- HBO, Warner, and Discovery cable networks also faced cost cuts.
- Price Action: WBD shares traded lower by 0.23% at $13.15 premarket on the last check Tuesday.