Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) Trading Down 2.1% After Analyst Downgrade

Shares of Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) dropped 2.1% during trading on Thursday after New Street Research lowered their price target on the stock from $100.00 to $96.00. New Street Research currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Netflix traded as low as $82.98 and last traded at $83.54. Approximately 68,709,497 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 24% from the average daily volume of 55,557,773 shares. The stock had previously closed at $85.36.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Susquehanna upgraded Netflix to a “positive” rating and set a $112.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. DZ Bank reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Netflix in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Citic Securities cut their price objective on Netflix from $128.00 to $125.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Pivotal Research reduced their target price on Netflix from $105.00 to $95.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Netflix in a research report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-three have given a Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $119.36.

Insider Transactions at Netflix

In other news, Director Bradford L. Smith sold 31,790 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.86, for a total transaction of $2,824,859.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 79,690 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,081,253.40. This represents a 28.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gregory K. Peters sold 20,270 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.57, for a total transaction of $2,220,943.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 127,810 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,003,886.08. This trade represents a 13.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 1,653,599 shares of company stock worth $173,141,263 in the last quarter. 1.37% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Trending Headlines about Netflix

Here are the key news stories impacting Netflix this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat and subscriber momentum — Netflix narrowly beat estimates for Q4 revenue and EPS and highlighted strong content (e.g., “Stranger Things”) driving engagement. Helped by ‘Stranger Things’ finale, Netflix lands strong fourth quarter
• Positive Sentiment: Scale: ~325 million paid subscribers — reinforces Netflix’s dominant user base and revenue runway. 325 Million Reasons to Buy Netflix Stock Today
• Positive Sentiment: Ad business is ramping — management said advertising revenue is material and growing, improving monetization beyond subscriptions. Netflix’s advertising strategy shift is starting to pay off
• Neutral Sentiment: All‑cash WBD bid — Netflix amended its offer to all cash (same headline price), which removes share‑swap uncertainty but concentrates the financing burden on Netflix. Netflix Just Upped Its Bid for Warner Bros. to All Cash
• Neutral Sentiment: Regulatory and process uncertainty — EU antitrust review and an active competing bid from Paramount raise the odds of a prolonged, uncertain outcome. EU to weigh Netflix, Paramount bids for Warner Bros at the same time
• Neutral Sentiment: Senate hearing on the WBD deal — co‑CEO Ted Sarandos is set to testify, adding political/regulatory visibility to the transaction. Netflix’s Sarandos to testify in Senate hearing on Warner deal
• Negative Sentiment: Softer near‑term guidance — Q1/2026 guidance came in below some Street expectations, which triggered the post‑earnings selloff despite the quarter’s beat. Netflix’s stock remains under pressure as investors balk at forecast and Warner Bros. acquisition
• Negative Sentiment: Buyback pause and added debt — Netflix paused share repurchases to preserve cash for the WBD offer and has arranged incremental debt, reducing near‑term shareholder returns and increasing leverage. Netflix Craters On Disappointing Guidance, Stock Buyback Pause
• Negative Sentiment: Margin pressure and higher content spend — Netflix plans to lift program spending, which could compress margins in 2026 even if it supports engagement. Netflix to boost program spending in 2026
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst target trims and insider selling — multiple firms trimmed targets after the print and insiders have been net sellers, adding to negative sentiment around valuation and capital allocation. These Analysts Slash Their Forecasts On Netflix Following Q4 Earnings

Institutional Trading of Netflix

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. First Financial Corp IN increased its holdings in shares of Netflix by 900.0% in the fourth quarter. First Financial Corp IN now owns 270 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. boosted its stake in Netflix by 885.2% during the fourth quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 266 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 239 shares during the last quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Netflix during the third quarter worth $25,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Netflix in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, MB Levis & Associates LLC increased its stake in shares of Netflix by 177.8% in the 4th quarter. MB Levis & Associates LLC now owns 300 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Netflix Stock Down 2.1%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 1.19. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $96.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $111.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $353.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.06 and a beta of 1.71.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 20th. The Internet television network reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.01. Netflix had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 43.26%. The firm had revenue of $12.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.97 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.43 earnings per share. Netflix’s quarterly revenue was up 17.6% on a year-over-year basis. Netflix has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.760-0.760 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Netflix, Inc. will post 24.58 EPS for the current year.

Netflix Company Profile

Netflix, Inc (NASDAQ: NFLX) is a global entertainment company that provides subscription-based streaming of films, television series, documentaries and other video content. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph and headquartered in Los Gatos, California, the company began as a DVD-by-mail rental service and introduced streaming video in 2007. Netflix later expanded into producing and distributing original programming, beginning notable original hits in the 2010s, and now operates a content production and distribution ecosystem alongside its licensing activity.

The company’s primary product is its on-demand streaming service, which can be accessed on a wide range of internet-connected devices and delivered through a suite of apps and web platforms.