Episode summary
Warner Bros. Sales Fall on Loss of NBA, Weak Film Slate | Bloomberg Intelligence
Bloomberg Intelligence
· · Hosts: Paul Sweeney, Scarlet Fu · Guests: Geetha Ranganathan, Mandeep Singh, Jody Lurie, Michael Halen
Summary
Warner Bros. Discovery’s quarter was framed as a mixed story: sales fell after it lost NBA rights and faced a weaker film slate, but the analyst said streaming profitability is improving and TV-network EBITDA declines have moderated sharply. Fox also beat expectations, helped by advertising and sports, while its decision to delay NFL renewal talks until late in the 2029 season removes a major near-term risk. The analyst said the biggest issue around Warner Bros. Discovery remains the Paramount Skydance deal, which is being overshadowed by antitrust and court uncertainty.
On Alphabet, the analyst argued that high-profile AI departures and delayed Gemini releases are a negative sign for Google’s model race against Anthropic and OpenAI. He said Google still has major infrastructure advantages, including TPUs and cloud workloads, but talent appears to be drifting toward frontier labs that are moving faster. The discussion also noted a $25 billion bond offering as evidence that the AI buildout is capital-intensive.
In leisure and restaurants, Hertz was described as a low-expectation turnaround still burdened by a messy capital structure, while Six Flags showed some operational improvement but faces liquidity and demand uncertainty. Restaurant Brands reported a solid quarter, led by Burger King U.S. and international strength, while Shake Shack became the focus of activist interest because franchising would take time and new capabilities to execute.
Key takeaways
- The analyst said Warner Bros. Discovery’s streaming margins reached about 17%, with a 20% long-term target still in view.
- Fox’s decision to defer NFL renegotiations until late in the 2029 season removes a big downside risk, according to the analyst.
- The analyst viewed Alphabet’s AI departures and delayed Gemini releases as a negative for Google’s position versus Anthropic and OpenAI.
- Hertz beat lowered expectations, but Jody Lurie said the company’s capital structure remains ugly and the turnaround path is still tenuous.
- Restaurant Brands posted a solid quarter, with Burger King U.S. comp sales described as high-single-digit and international still strong.
- Starboard’s Shake Shack plan depends on franchising, which Michael Halen said is a new muscle that will take about 18 months to affect results.
Notable quotes
“The sales declined after it lost the NBA rights, but I don't know that it matters that much”
“they posted margins of about 17% and remember their long-term target is 20%”
“the fact that Google is losing talent, I mean these are people who have been there for very long is definitely not a good sign”
“the capital structure is just ugly. It's it's not one that that makes you write home to mom about”
How the episode opens
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Listen on demand wherever you get your podcasts or watch us live on YouTube. We are in earning season and right now the big media companies are taking their turn publishing their latest results. Warner Brothers coming out with numbers.
The sales declined after it lost the NBA rights, but I don't know that it matters that much given that this is a company um being absorbed by uh Paramount eventually. Potentially yes, right now that's kind of on hold, but the the thinking is that it will be. Uh Fox also came out with the results.
The World Cup was certainly a good thing for that company. Let's bring in Gita Ranganathan. She is our analyst on US media joining us from Princeton.
Githa, of the results that came out, what gets your attention?
Yeah, I mean you pointed out uh Warner Brothers Discovery. Yes, you know, the earnings as you said, uh, Scarlet, uh, and rightly so, is definitely the sides the sideshow for the moment, but I think, you know, things could change very quickly and it, you know, it could be the the main piece here because we're really looking at a company and I think everybody now is kind of thinking of what happens if the Paramount Sky Dance deal uh, falls through. And you know, we know that the merger agreement terminates on June 4th of 2027.
And if Paramount Sky Dance can't get its act together and can't like settle out of court, there's a very high probability probability that they actually lose this trial uh and then they are in really bad shape.
From the episode’s captions: roughly the first two minutes, lightly cleaned. Keep watching on YouTube →
Topics
- warner bros discovery nba rights
- media earnings outlook
- alphabet ai leadership
- hertz used car market
- restaurant sales rebound
Companies and tickers mentioned
- FOX
- FOXA
- GOOGL
- GOOG
- HTZ
- Warner Bros. Discovery
- Fox Corp.
- Paramount Skydance Corp.
- Alphabet Inc.
- Anthropic
- OpenAI
- Hertz Global Holdings Inc.
- Six Flags
- Burger King
Watch the episode
Watch “Warner Bros. Sales Fall on Loss of NBA, Weak Film Slate | Bloomberg Intelligence” on YouTube
Summary, takeaways and quote selection by Octagon. Quotes are short excerpts; the full conversation is in the episode.
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