Media stocks fell on Friday as investors held out hope of an end to the Hollywood writers’ strike.
The Writers Guild of America’s bargaining committee told members shortly after midnight ET that it met with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers to bargain on Thursday, adding that talks would continue on Friday. CNBC reported late Wednesday night that the two sides were close to reaching an agreement.
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Media stocks fell on Friday as investors held out hope of an end to the Hollywood writers’ strike.
The Writers Guild of America’s bargaining committee told members shortly after midnight ET that it met with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers to bargain on Thursday, adding that talks would continue on Friday. CNBC reported late Wednesday night that the two sides were close to reaching an agreement.
A WGA spokesperson did not comment after the update sent to members by the negotiating committee. A spokesperson for AMPTP, the entertainment industry’s collective bargaining representative, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
After initially opening higher, shares of Paramount Global (ticker: PARA) fell 0.6% shortly after the market opened on Friday. Netflix (NFLX) stock fell 0.3%. Walt Disney (DIS) shares were flat. Amazon (AMZN) stock rose 1.5%. Warner Bros. stock fell. Discovery (WBD) was down 1.6%, while Comcast (CMCSA) was down 0.4%.
The WGA began its strike in early May. Although some filming could take place without writers, Hollywood came to a standstill in July when the Hollywood Screen Actors Guild went on strike of its own. A Screen Actors Guild representative did not return a request for comment on reports of progress between writers and studios.
Hollywood studios are reporting lower costs amid the strike, though the outage is beginning to impact earnings expectations — especially for companies that make money from television production, such as Warner Bros. Television. Discovery. Studios began adjusting their film slate due to delays associated with the strike.
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