Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD -0.44%) is a multinational media and entertainment company that owns a number of iconic media properties, including:
- Warner Bros. brands
- Discovery Channel and Discovery+
- HBO and streaming service HBO Max
- CNN
- DC Comics
- Eurosport
- HGTV
- Food Network
- OWN
- TLC
- Travel Channel
The company was formed in 2022 when AT&T (T -1.49%) spun off WarnerMedia so that it could merge with Discovery. AT&T shareholders received a 71% stake in the newly formed Warner Bros. Discovery, while Discovery shareholders got the remaining 29%.
Read on to learn about what company owns Warner Bros. Discovery today, including its largest shareholders and board of directors, and how you can invest in Warner Bros. Discovery stock.
Overview
Who is the owner of Warner Bros. Discovery?
Warner Bros. Discovery is a publicly traded company, meaning it's owned by its shareholders. The company was formed in 2022 after AT&T spun off WarnerMedia (previously Time Warner) and merged it with Discovery, forming a new entertainment and streaming services company.
Warner Brothers Pictures was established by brothers Harry, Albert, Samuel, and Jack Warner in 1923. The company became a pioneer in early sound films and was producing about 100 films per year by the 1930s.
Eventually, it became two separate entities, Warner Communications and Warner Bros. Inc. Warner Communications merged with Time Inc. to form Time Warner in 1990, with Warner Bros. becoming its own division in the new company. AT&T acquired Time Warner in 2018 for around $85 billion and renamed it WarnerMedia.
Meanwhile, Discovery was founded in 1985. In addition to the Discovery Channel, it owned Animal Planet, Science Channel, and TLC. It acquired Scripps Networks Interactive in 2018, adding the Food Network, Travel Channel, and HGTV to its lineup.
Largest shareholders
Who are the largest shareholders?
Institutional investors own about 71% of Warner Bros. Discovery shares, while insiders own just under 6%. Let's take a look at Warner Bros. Discovery's largest shareholders.
Individuals
- John Malone is the Chair Emeritus of the board and the former CEO and chairman of Discovery Holdings Co. He owns more than 19 million shares.
- Kenneth Lowe was president and CEO of The E.W. Scripps Co. and chairman of the board, president, and CEO of Scripps Networks Interactive, which was acquired by Discovery in 2018. He owns over 1.1 million shares.
- Paul Gould is a managing director at investment bank Allen & Co. He is a past Discovery board member who now sits on the Warner Bros. Discovery board. He owns over 844,357 shares.
- Geoffrey Yang is a founding partner and managing director of a private equity and venture capital firm. He was a previous AT&T board member who now sits on the Warner Bros. Discovery board. He owns more than 176,061 shares.
- Samuel Di Piazza, Jr. was the global CEO of PricewaterhouseCoopers, or PWC. He is the current chair of the Warner Bros. Discovery board and a past AT&T director. He owns almost 200,910 shares.
Institutional investors
- Vanguard Group Inc. The Vanguard Group is a Pennsylvania-based registered investment advisor that pioneered low-cost index funds. It owns more than 256.82 million shares of Warner Bros. Discovery, representing a 10.37% stake. The Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund (VTI -0.06%), the Vanguard 500 Index Fund (VOO -0.07%), and the Vanguard Mid-Cap Index Fund (VO -0.01%) are among the largest holders of the stock.
- BlackRock (BLK 0.41%) is the world's largest asset manager and owner of iShares ETFs. BlackRock owns about 173 million shares of Warner Bros. Discovery Inc., a stake of 6.99%. Its iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV -0.09%) owns more than 24 million shares.
- State Street Corp. (STT 0.41%): Boston-based State Street Corp. is an investment management firm and the largest custodial bank on the globe. It's also the owner of SPDR ETFs and the creator of the first S&P 500 ETF, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY -0.05%). State Street Corp. owns about 168.71 million shares of Warner Bros. Discovery, or a 6.81% stake. The Communication Services Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLC -0.45%) and the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY -0.05%) are among the top holders of the stock.
- Harris Associates LP. Harris Associates LP is a Chicago-based investment management firm with approximately $96 billion in assets under management. It owns roughly 95.57 million Warner Bros. Discovery shares, representing a 3.86% stake.
- Geode Capital Management LLC. Geode was founded by Fidelity in 2001 before becoming a separate entity in 2003. Today, it manages Fidelity's stock index funds as a sub-advisor. Geode owns almost 60 million Warner Bros. Discovery shares, a 2.43% stake. The Fidelity 500 Index Fund (NASDAQMUTUALFUND:FXAI.X) is a top shareholder.
Board of Directors
Board of directors
Who is on the board of directors of Warner Bros?
The Warner Bros. Discovery board of directors consists of the following 14 individuals:
- Samuel Di Piazza, Jr., board chair: Di Piazza had a 36-year career with PWC and served as its global CEO from 2002 until retiring in 2009. Di Piazza served on the AT&T board from 2015 until 2022. He has been a Warner Bros. Discovery director since 2022.
- David Zaslav, president and CEO: Zaslav took the helm of Discovery in 2006 and spearheaded the merger between AT&T's Warner Media and Discovery. In his previous career at NBC Universal, he played a key role in the launch of CNBC.
- Richard Fisher was president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas from 2005 until March 2015. He served on the board of AT&T from 2015 to 2021 and has been a Warner Bros. Discovery board member since 2022.
- Paul Gould has served at Allen & Co., an investment bank, since 1972. He has held roles as managing director and executive vice president. Gould has served as a financial advisor to various Fortune 500 corporations and advised on multiple major media company acquisitions. He became a Discovery board member in 2008.
- Debra Lee served as chairman and CEO of BET Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ:PARA), from 2006 until retiring in 2018 after joining BET Networks in 1986. Lee is the founder and chair of the Leading Women Defined Foundation, a nonprofit education and advocacy organization in Los Angeles. She became a Warner Bros. Discovery board member in 2022.
- Joey Levin was the CEO of Angi, Inc. (ANGI -0.57%) from 2022 to 2024 and was the CEO of IAC, Inc. (IAC 0.32%) from 2015 to 2025. He joined the board in 2025.
- Anton Levy has held several senior leadership roles at General Atlantic, including Co-President and Chairman of Global Technology until January 2025. He became a director in 2025.
- Kenneth Lowe previously served as president and CEO of The E.W. Scripps Co. from 2000 to 2008. He served as chairman of the board, president, and CEO of Scripps Networks Interactive until it sold to Discovery Inc. in 2018. Lowe became a Warner Bros. Discovery director in 2023.
- John Malone: Malone served as CEO and chairman of the board of directors of Discovery Holding Company from 2005 to 2008, when it merged with Discovery. He became a Discovery board member in 2008 and served on the Warner Bros. Discovery Board ever since. He was designated Chair Emeritus in June 2025.
- Fazal Merchant is a senior advisor to Sixth Street Partners and various media and technology-related endeavors. He retired in 2020 as co-chief executive officer of Tanium Inc., a subscription-based global cybersecurity and IT management company. He previously served as CFO of DreamWorks Animation SKG and in several executive roles at DirectTV. He became a board member in 2022.
- Anthony Note has been the CEO and director of SoFi Technologies, Inc. (SOFI 0.33%) since 2018. Before that, he was the CFO and COO at Twitter. He joined the board in 2025.
- Paula Price was the executive vice president and CFO of Macy's (M 0.72%) from 2018 until 2020. She was a full-time senior lecturer at Harvard Business School from 2014 to 2018 and remains a visiting executive. She is a certified public accountant (CPA) who previously served as executive vice president and CFO of Ahold USA, a U.S. grocery retailer. She has been a board member since 2022.
- Daniel Sanchez has a master's degree in tax law and practiced in tax planning before retiring in 2021. He has been a director of Discovery, Inc. and Starz (STRZ 0.07%), and joined the Warner Bros. Discovery board in 2024.
- Geoffrey Yang is a founding partner and managing director of Redpoint Ventures, a global private equity and venture capital firm. He also founded Performance Health Sciences (d/b/a Apeiron Life), where he has served as CEO and as a director since April 2018. He served as an AT&T director from 2016 to 2022 and joined the Warner Bros. Discovery board in 2022.
How to invest
How to invest in Warner Bros. Discovery
Because Warner Bros. Discovery is a publicly traded company, anyone with a brokerage account can buy its stock. Follow these four steps to start investing.
- Open and fund a brokerage account. You can open a brokerage account online in just a few minutes. You'll need to provide some personal info, such as your date of birth, Social Security number, and employment details. Once you deposit funds in your account, you'll be ready to start trading.
- Make a budget. Determine how much you can afford to invest in Warner Bros. Discovery and whether you want to make a one-time investment or a recurring investment. It's important to diversify your portfolio, so any single stock should only account for a small fraction of your overall investments.
- Do your homework. You should only invest in a company after doing your due diligence. Make sure you understand how Warner Bros. Discovery makes money, its competitors, its competitive advantages, and potential headwinds it could face.
- Place your trade. Once you're ready to buy stock in Warner Bros. Discovery, enter the ticker, WBD, on your broker's platform. Then, indicate the number of shares you want to buy or the dollar value of your investment if your brokerage supports fractional shares. You'll also need to indicate whether you're placing a market order or a limit order. You'll get a preview of your order; if the information is correct, go forth and execute that trade.
Related investing topics
FAQ
Who owns Warner Bros. FAQ
Who is Warner Bros. owned by?
Warner Bros. Discovery is a publicly traded company that's owned by its shareholders. Institutional investors own the majority of its shares. The Vanguard Group, BlackRock Inc., and State Street Corp are its top shareholders.
Is Warner Brothers owned by HBO?
No, HBO is a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery.
Is Warner Brothers owned by Disney?
No, Warner Brothers isn't owned by Disney (NYSE:DIS). However, Warner Brothers Discovery and Disney recently partnered to offer their streaming services Disney+, Hulu, and Max in a bundle.
