Related: Time Warner Reports Higher 3Q Earnings
Time Warner's stock dropped as the company lowered its aggressive forecast for 2016 earnings.
CEO Jeff Bewkes said on the company's third-quarter call with analysts and investors that 2016 earnings are likely to be in the $5.25 range rather than the $6 forecast previously. The company upheld its earnings guidance for 2015.
COO Howard Averill added that the company was also unlikely to make the $8 a share earnings forecast for 2018.
Time Warner made the aggressive forecasts after it fought off a takeover attempt by Rupert Murdoch's 21st Century Fox in 2014.
The biggest reason for cutting the profit outlook was the effect of a strengthening dollars, which will cost Time Warner about 50 cents a share, the company said.
Averill also said that Time Warner's Turner networks are losing more subscribers than expected. Also ratings are lower than expected, cutting into advertising revenues. There might also be a charge taken for programming that no longer fits with the rebranded TNT and TBS networks.
Time Warner is also looking at making $100 million additional investments in programming, the viewer experience and other capabilities.
Time Warner stock was down nearly 8% in mid-day trading.
Most other media stocks were also down, with the exception of CBS which reported earnings Tuesday and Crown Media, which reported Monday.
