Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) Sets New 12-Month High on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $997.00 and last traded at $984.48, with a volume of 574670 shares. The stock had previously closed at $869.68.

The Internet television network reported $4.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.20 by $0.07. Netflix had a return on equity of 35.86% and a net margin of 20.70%. The company had revenue of $10.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10,141,900 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.11 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NFLX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised Netflix from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, December 21st. Needham & Company LLC increased their target price on Netflix from $800.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Netflix from $758.00 to $797.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Netflix from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Loop Capital raised their price objective on Netflix from $925.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Netflix currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $993.82.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Richard N. Barton sold 5,698 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $756.00, for a total transaction of $4,307,688.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 246 shares in the company, valued at $185,976. The trade was a 95.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Timothy M. Haley sold 11,090 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $757.96, for a total value of $8,405,776.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 152,198 shares of company stock worth $127,616,898. 1.76% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Netflix

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp boosted its position in Netflix by 2.6% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,951,347 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $12,023,082,000 after purchasing an additional 426,740 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Netflix by 1.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,148,356 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $6,464,736,000 after buying an additional 123,029 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in Netflix by 4.7% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 6,990,874 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $4,958,417,000 after purchasing an additional 316,594 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Netflix by 116,620.0% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 5,753,129 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $4,080,522,000 after purchasing an additional 5,748,200 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Netflix by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,897,389 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $3,473,571,000 after buying an additional 23,702 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Netflix Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $407.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.99, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.27. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $886.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $762.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

About Netflix

Netflix, Inc provides entertainment services. It offers TV series, documentaries, feature films, and games across various genres and languages. The company also provides members the ability to receive streaming content through a host of internet-connected devices, including TVs, digital video players, TV set-top boxes, and mobile devices.