Evercore Begins Coverage on Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX)

Analysts at Evercore began coverage on shares of Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) in a report released on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm set an “outperform” rating and a $115.00 price target on the Internet television network’s stock. Evercore’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 19.49% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on NFLX. TD Cowen lowered their target price on Netflix from $115.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Netflix from $127.50 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 18th. Erste Group Bank lowered Netflix from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Guggenheim reduced their price target on Netflix from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, HSBC decreased their price target on shares of Netflix from $107.00 to $106.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-three have issued a Buy rating and fifteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $115.91.

Netflix Price Performance

NASDAQ NFLX opened at $96.24 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.19. The stock has a market cap of $406.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.08, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.71. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $85.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $104.52. Netflix has a 52-week low of $75.01 and a 52-week high of $134.12.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The Internet television network reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.01. Netflix had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 43.26%. The company had revenue of $12.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.97 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.43 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 17.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Netflix has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.760-0.760 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Netflix will post 24.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Gregory K. Peters sold 105,781 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.94, for a total transaction of $8,773,476.14. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 122,140 shares in the company, valued at $10,130,291.60. The trade was a 46.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Reed Hastings sold 426,290 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.67, for a total transaction of $39,078,004.30. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 3,940 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $361,179.80. This trade represents a 99.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 1,399,163 shares of company stock valued at $129,899,103 in the last ninety days. 1.37% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Netflix

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NFLX. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Netflix by 912.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 390,014,981 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $36,567,805,000 after purchasing an additional 351,493,659 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Netflix by 927.6% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 176,780,995 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $16,574,986,000 after purchasing an additional 159,578,053 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Netflix by 892.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 99,598,678 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $9,305,336,000 after purchasing an additional 89,558,684 shares during the period. Capital World Investors lifted its stake in shares of Netflix by 859.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 89,341,444 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $8,376,656,000 after buying an additional 80,025,890 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of Netflix by 685.8% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 86,058,878 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $8,068,882,000 after buying an additional 75,107,069 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Netflix

Here are the key news stories impacting Netflix this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Netflix formally declined to match Paramount Skydance’s higher offer for Warner Bros., ending the bidding war and securing a large breakup / termination payment that preserves cash and avoids taking on a complex, debt‑heavy asset. Netflix Receives Termination Fee After WBD Deal Collapse
• Positive Sentiment: Investors cheered the exit as it reduces near‑term strategic risk and potential integration headaches; commentators and analysts framed the decision as disciplined capital allocation, which helped lift shares. Netflix, Paramount shares jump as months-long fight for Warner ends
• Positive Sentiment: Regulatory and political risk eased — a planned Senate antitrust hearing tied to the deal was canceled after Netflix withdrew, removing a headline risk that would have attracted more scrutiny. After Netflix Drops Warner Bros. Bid, GOP Senator Cancels Planned Antitrust Hearing
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and brokers responded with upgrades and higher price targets (Wolfe, Arete, Evercore coverage appears), supporting the rally and signaling refreshed bullish conviction. Wolfe Research adjusts price target on Netflix to $110 from $95; maintains outperform
• Positive Sentiment: Operational news also helped sentiment: Netflix expanded live sports/content reach by partnering with Apple to co‑broadcast the Canadian F1 Grand Prix, reinforcing content momentum outside M&A headlines. Apple and Netflix team up to air Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix
• Neutral Sentiment: Market structure changed: Paramount Skydance looks set to win the Warner Bros. deal, which removes one strategic path for Netflix but also eliminates a costly contest; outcome may affect industry dynamics long‑term rather than Netflix’s near‑term earnings. Project Warrior: How Paramount beat Netflix in $110bn battle for Warner
• Negative Sentiment: Some opinion pieces warn of political/antitrust fallout and reputational/strategic implications from the episode (claims the fight became politicized and that Netflix’s positioning could invite scrutiny). These narratives could re‑emerge if Netflix pursues other large deals. Opinion | Why Netflix Lost Warner to Paramount

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.