Paramount Insists Its WBD Offer Is Still Better Than Netflix’s, but Doesn’t Raise Bid Above $30 Per Share

Paramount Skydance is undeterred by the Warner Bros. Discovery Board’s latest rejection of its offer to acquire the company, but is not raising its bid above its stated $30-per-share all-cash offer. At least not yet.

In a statement released Thursday morning, Paramount said it “notes” WBD’s latest rejection (its eighth, if you’re counting) and reaffirmed why the company believes its offer is superior to Netflix’s.

The company said it “cured every issue” Warner Bros. raised in December about its offer, “most notably by providing an irrevocable personal guarantee by Larry Ellison for the equity portion of the financing.” But the company said WBD “continues to raise issues in Paramount’s offer that we have already addressed” and pointed the finger at Netflix’s offer, which it said “contains multiple uncertain components and has already decreased in total value.”

“Our offer clearly provides WBD investors greater value and a more certain, expedited path to completion,” Paramount chairman and CEO David Ellison said. “Throughout this process, we have worked hard for WBD shareholders and remain committed to engaging with them on the merits of our superior bid and advancing our ongoing regulatory review process.”

Paramount also pointed to comparisons between Versant and Discovery Global in its response. The Comcast spinoff company’s stock price plunged in its Nasdaq debut on Monday, and fell further to $33.27 as of Wednesday’s close. Many have pointed to Versant as a proxy of the value of Discovery Global, which will contain all the cable assets from WBD and be spun off in the third quarter of 2026.

Paramount said Versant’s performance on the stock market “illustrates the challenged path ahead for Discovery Global,” which it valued between $0 and $0.50 per share.

“While Discovery Global equity would have no equity value if the company trades in-line with Versant, there are in fact several compelling reasons why it should trade at a discount to Versant,” the letter states. “First and foremost, Discovery Global will likely be significantly more leveraged. In addition, Discovery Global’s financial performance lags Versant on both a historical and projected basis, likely as a result of its less attractive portfolio.”

More to come…

The post Paramount Insists Its WBD Offer Is Still Better Than Netflix’s, but Doesn’t Raise Bid Above $30 Per Share appeared first on TheWrap.