. AT&T's shares tumbled 4% percent the same day. The stock rose modestly Wednesday and Thursday but dropped more than 1.5% on Friday.
AT&T expects the WarnerMedia spin-off to be completed in the second quarter of this year. Under the merger deal, announced last May, AT&T shareholders will own 71% of the new Warner Bros. Discovery company and receive a 0.24 share of Warner Bros. Many of the financial details of the transaction became known for the first time this week.
Stankey said that despite shareholders' concerns, he expects the merger to ultimately bring value to those who own the newly-minted company's stock — though not without some volatility along the way.