Warner Bros. Discovery Stock Tumbles as Cord-Cutting Fuels $10B Quarterly Loss

Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) shares plunged Thursday after the entertainment company recorded an almost $10 billion second-quarter loss, hit by a write-down in the value of its cable networks.

The company posted a $9.1 billion non-cash goodwill impairment charge from its cable networks segment, showing that CNN and TNT, among others, continue to be disrupted by streaming services like Netflix (NFLX).

The company’s fortunes don’t look much brighter, either, after its TNT Sports unit last month lost out on the lucrative 11-year media rights deal to show NBA games.

Q2 Results Miss Estimates

Warner Bros. Discovery’s second-quarter loss widened to $9.99 billion from $1.24 billion last year, while revenue fell to $9.71 billion from $10.36 billion. Analysts polled by Visible Alpha anticipated a loss of just $562.7 million on $10.17 billion in revenue.

Cable networks across the board are struggling. Disney (DIS) on Wednesday said its combined streaming business of ESPN+, Disney+, and Hulu was profitable for the first time, but said revenue at its linear TV networks fell 7% year-over-year in the third quarter and shares fell.

Warner Bros. Discovery shares sank 8% to $7.07 soon after the opening bell Thursday. They are down almost 40% this year.