Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) Trading 0.5% Higher – Here’s Why

Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) traded up 0.5% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $962.24 and last traded at $955.92. 2,964,839 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 14% from the average session volume of 3,457,218 shares. The stock had previously closed at $950.84.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Benchmark raised shares of Netflix from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Netflix from $850.00 to $960.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Phillip Securities downgraded shares of Netflix from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised shares of Netflix from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $940.00 to $1,150.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Arete Research raised shares of Netflix to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,016.78.

Netflix Trading Up 1.0 %

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $959.08 and its 200 day moving average price is $857.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 1.22. The firm has a market cap of $410.77 billion, a PE ratio of 48.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.38.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The Internet television network reported $4.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.20 by $0.07. Netflix had a net margin of 22.34% and a return on equity of 38.32%. The business had revenue of $10.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.11 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Netflix, Inc. will post 24.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider David A. Hyman sold 41,121 shares of Netflix stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the insider now owns 31,610 shares in the company, valued at $30,946,506.10. The trade was a 56.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Reed Hastings sold 35,868 shares of Netflix stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $888.08, for a total transaction of $31,853,653.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 114 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $101,241.12. This represents a 99.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 288,103 shares of company stock valued at $279,142,041. 1.76% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NFLX. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Netflix in the fourth quarter worth approximately $5,019,087,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Netflix by 123,836.7% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,925,977 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $1,716,662,000 after buying an additional 1,924,423 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in shares of Netflix by 59.3% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,301,098 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $2,051,016,000 after buying an additional 856,307 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in shares of Netflix by 318.9% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 976,924 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $870,752,000 after buying an additional 743,724 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of Netflix by 14.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,574,006 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $4,076,903,000 after buying an additional 570,674 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.