"There were no surprises there," said Michael Savner, an analyst with Bank of America Securities.
The filings also disclosed that, because of management incentives, Discovery founder John S. Hendricks had increased the value of his stake in the company to 2.5 percent from less than 1 percent.
Some think Silver Spring-based Discovery may be positioning itself to begin an ambitious round of acquisitions.
(James M. Thresher -- The Washington Post)
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Some analysts downplayed the idea that Discovery Holdings will be shopping for assets. Many of the properties that would be an obvious fit, they said, are not for sale.
"There is no obvious asset to buy," Savner said. And if Discovery Holdings buys up too many properties, Malone "runs into the same problem he started with -- with something whose value is getting obscured by a complex company."
Richard Greenfield of Fulcrum Global Partners LLC is one of many analysts who believe Discovery Communications or Discovery Holdings will eventually be snapped up by one of the major media conglomerates.
"You don't see too many free-floating cable networks," he said.
Others believe the spinoff makes it less likely Discovery will be acquired, especially if Cox and Newhouse do not agree to merge their shares in the deal.
"A 50 percent stake in Discovery could be attractive, but not nearly as attractive as 100 percent," Savner said.
"There are lots of ways to make a deal," Wachovia's Cheen said. "When you consolidate the assets under one roof, there are many more options and flexibility."
Until Cox and Newhouse make their move, predicting what will happen is about as reliable as reading coffee grounds.
David Leavy, a Discovery spokesman, said the company put in a new coffee service after surveying employees. "With the improved quality and options, there was an increase in costs, thus the machines will be coin operated and cost users 50 cents," Leavy said in an e-mail. "I know this is big stuff, but absolutely NO connection to this week's announcement."
