Warner Bros Discovery Inc (NASDAQ:WBD) stock rose 2.55% (As on May 10, 11:09:09 AM UTC-4, Source: Google Finance) after the company reported first-quarter results, missing analyst expectations on both the top and bottom lines despite strength in its streaming unit. Warner Bros. Discovery posted a net loss attributable to the company of $966 million, an improvement from the year-ago quarter when it reported a loss of $1.07 billion. The company said total adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization were down roughly 20% during the first quarter to $2.1 billion, noting its Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League video game generated significantly lower revenue.

Moreover, the company has added 2 million direct-to-consumer streaming subscribers during the quarter, bringing its total to 99.6 million. That segment earned an adjusted $86 million during the quarter, an improvement of $36 million from the prior-year quarter, the company said. It also saw revenue increase “modestly” to $2.46 billion from the prior-year quarter. Advertising revenue for streaming proved to be a bright spot, increasing 70%, boosted by higher engagement on Max in the U.S. due in part to subscriber growth in the streaming service’s ad-lite tier and the launch of sports on the app. TV networks revenue was down 8% to $5.13 billion, with advertising revenue falling 11%. While the ad market has been soft for some time now, recent quarterly earnings show there has been improvement for digital and streaming while traditional TV lags behind.

Meanwhile, Warner Bros. Discovery’s studio segment revenue was down 12% to $2.82 billion compared with the same quarter last year. The segment was weighed down by the lackluster release of the latest iteration of Suicide Squad and the lingering effects of the Hollywood writers and actors strikes last year.

WBD in the first quarter of FY 24 has reported the adjusted loss per share of 40 cents, missing the analysts’ estimates for the adjusted loss per share of 24 cents. The company had reported the adjusted revenue decline of 7 percent to $9.96 billion in the first quarter of FY 24, missing the analysts’ estimates for revenue of $10.231 billion.

Additionally, The company’s cash position improved, with free cash flow increasing to $390 million, a $1.3 billion improvement from the same quarter last year. Warner Bros. Discovery has been working to reduce its debt load, which now stands at $43.2 billion, stemming from the merger of Warner Bros. and Discovery in 2022. The company said it repaid $1.1 billion in debt during the quarter, and also announced a $1.75 billion cash tender aimed at further reducing its debt.