Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) Shares Up 0.9% After Strong Earnings

Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX)’s share price was up 0.9% during trading on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as high as $974.50 and last traded at $970.00. Approximately 1,745,417 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 53% from the average daily volume of 3,713,222 shares. The stock had previously closed at $961.63.

The Internet television network reported $6.61 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.74 by $0.87. The business had revenue of $10.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.51 billion. Netflix had a net margin of 22.34% and a return on equity of 38.32%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $8.28 EPS.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on NFLX. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and set a $1,150.00 price target on shares of Netflix in a research report on Friday. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Netflix in a research report on Friday. Wolfe Research upgraded Netflix from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $1,100.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Netflix from $1,050.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Netflix in a research report on Thursday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $1,100.00 price target on the stock. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Netflix has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,023.49.

Insider Buying and Selling at Netflix

In related news, CEO Gregory K. Peters sold 4,939 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,030.00, for a total value of $5,087,170.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,950 shares in the company, valued at $13,338,500. The trade was a 27.61 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Spencer Adam Neumann sold 2,601 shares of Netflix stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $921.72, for a total transaction of $2,397,393.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 3,691 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,402,068.52. This trade represents a 41.34 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 274,312 shares of company stock valued at $267,919,297 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.76% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Netflix

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Netflix by 13.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,692,563 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $1,200,485,000 after buying an additional 198,148 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp raised its holdings in shares of Netflix by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 41,946 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $29,751,000 after purchasing an additional 1,684 shares in the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC lifted its stake in shares of Netflix by 13.8% in the 3rd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 247 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $175,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Resource Group boosted its holdings in Netflix by 0.7% in the third quarter. Advisory Resource Group now owns 1,746 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $1,238,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Netflix by 356.5% in the third quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 13,879 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $9,844,000 after buying an additional 10,839 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Netflix Stock Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $954.87 and a 200-day moving average price of $891.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.22. The company has a market cap of $416.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.55.

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.