09:06 AM EST, 11/06/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Warner Bros. Discovery ( WBD ) reported a smaller-than-expected third-quarter loss on Thursday, although revenue declined more than projected, while the media and entertainment giant added fewer subscribers than Wall Street estimated.

The company posted a net loss of $0.06 a share for the September quarter, compared with earnings of $0.05 the year before. The consensus on FactSet was for a GAAP loss of $0.07 per share. Revenue decreased 6% to $9.05 billion, trailing the Street's view for $9.18 billion.

The stock was down nearly 1% in the most recent premarket activity.

Warner Bros., which operates the HBO Max streaming service, saw revenue in the streaming and studios segment increase 8% to $5.28 billion. Studios revenue jumped 24% while streaming was flat at $2.63 billion. Global streaming subscribers came in at 128 million, up from 110.5 million in the prior-year period, but below the average analyst estimate of 128.2 million.

In the streaming division, the company saw distribution revenue growth decelerate in the third quarter due to the impact of a domestic HBO Max distribution deal renewal with a former related party, it said in a shareholder letter.

"We remain on a clear path towards at least 150 million Streaming subscribers by the end of 2026," Warner Bros. said in the letter.

Revenue in the global linear networks unit dropped 22% to $3.88 billion. Within the segment, distribution revenue fell 8% amid decreases in domestic linear pay TV subscribers, while advertising slipped 20% driven by domestic audience declines. Content revenue tumbled 74% due to the sublicensing of Olympic sports rights to broadcast networks throughout Europe in the prior year, the company said.

For the ongoing quarter, Warner Bros. anticipates its studios division to face a "difficult comparison" to last year's results due to a library licensing deal with HBO Max, according to the letter. Distribution revenue growth in the streaming segment is pegged to be in the low-single-digit range, while the absence of the National Basketball Association is forecast to be a 300-basis-point headwind on streaming advertising revenue in the quarter, with "greater headwinds" expected during the first half of next year.

"With the launch of HBO Max in key European markets and the UK and Ireland, continued subscriber growth, our password sharing enforcement, and the recent U.S. price increase, we expect HBO Max distribution revenue to reaccelerate in the first half of 2026," the company said.

Last month, Warner Bros. announced it was open to a potential sale as it initiated a review of strategic alternatives after receiving interest from "multiple parties." The statement came after the group disclosed plans in June to split into two independent companies, one focused on its streaming and movies business and the other on its television networks portfolio.

The separation "remains on track" to be completed by the middle of 2026, the company said Thursday. As part of the review launched in October, the company will also consider an "alternative separation structure" to allow a merger transaction for Warner Bros., while the television networks-focused entity will be spun off to its shareholders.