Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Tuesday.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on NFLX. Arete Research raised shares of Netflix to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Macquarie lifted their price objective on Netflix from $965.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Guggenheim upped their target price on Netflix from $950.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Benchmark upgraded Netflix from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Netflix from $1,000.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,021.70.

Netflix Stock Performance

NASDAQ:NFLX opened at $978.94 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $904.67 and a 200 day simple moving average of $779.53. Netflix has a 1-year low of $542.01 and a 1-year high of $999.00. The stock has a market cap of $418.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.37, a PEG ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.27.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The Internet television network reported $4.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.20 by $0.07. Netflix had a return on equity of 38.32% and a net margin of 22.34%. The company had revenue of $10.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.11 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Netflix will post 24.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Netflix

In related news, insider David A. Hyman sold 41,121 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $979.01, for a total value of $40,257,870.21. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 31,610 shares in the company, valued at $30,946,506.10. This trade represents a 56.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Anne M. Sweeney sold 589 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $880.00, for a total transaction of $518,320.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 246,710 shares of company stock valued at $233,561,836. 1.76% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Netflix

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its position in Netflix by 82.4% during the fourth quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 31 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the period. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Netflix during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Newton One Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Netflix in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Pineridge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Netflix by 4,000.0% in the 4th quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC now owns 41 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. Finally, Princeton Global Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Netflix by 51.6% during the fourth quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 47 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

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.