Activist Ancora Urges Warner Board to Reject Netflix Bid

Activist investor Ancora Holdings Group is urging the board of Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. to reject the offer by Netflix Inc. and reconsider a competing bid by Paramount Skydance Corp., adding a new plot twist to one of Hollywood’s biggest takeover battles.

Ancora, an $11 billion fund that has a history of inserting itself in deals, has amassed a stake in Warner Bros. worth about $200 million, the firm said in a statement on Wednesday. Warner Bros. was valued at about $69 billion as of Tuesday, indicating Ancora’s stake in the company is less than 1%. Still, the push from Ancora could galvanize investors who have been weighing whether to tender their shares to Paramount’s hostile bid at an upcoming shareholder meeting or back the board’s support for Netflix.