Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Reduces Stock Position in Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX)

Key Points

• Maryland State Retirement & Pension System has reduced its investment in Netflix, Inc. by 13.2%, selling 3,058 shares, resulting in a remaining stake of 20,060 shares valued at approximately $18.7 million.
• Insider transactions revealed that CEO Theodore A. Sarandos and CFO Spencer Adam Neumann sold shares, decreasing their positions by 11.78% and 15.65%, respectively.
• Netflix reported strong quarterly earnings, with an EPS of $7.19, surpassing analysts' expectations, while its stock currently holds an average price target of $1,297.66 from research analysts.

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System cut its stake in shares of Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX - Free Report) by 13.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 20,060 shares of the Internet television network's stock after selling 3,058 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's holdings in Netflix were worth $18,707,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in NFLX. Fullcircle Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Netflix by 2.5% in the first quarter. Fullcircle Wealth LLC now owns 369 shares of the Internet television network's stock valued at $344,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Mission Creek Capital Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Netflix by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Mission Creek Capital Partners Inc. now owns 3,826 shares of the Internet television network's stock valued at $3,410,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Continuum Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Netflix by 4.4% in the first quarter. Continuum Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 235 shares of the Internet television network's stock valued at $219,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Financial Enhancement Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Netflix by 2.5% in the first quarter. Financial Enhancement Group LLC now owns 412 shares of the Internet television network's stock valued at $384,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Saxony Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Netflix by 1.4% in the first quarter. Saxony Capital Management LLC now owns 707 shares of the Internet television network's stock valued at $659,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,500.00 price target (up previously from $1,400.00) on shares of Netflix in a report on Monday, July 14th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Netflix from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, July 6th. Benchmark reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Netflix in a report on Monday, April 21st. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Netflix from $1,200.00 to $1,425.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, June 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $1,425.00 price target (up from $1,200.00) on shares of Netflix in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,297.66.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Netflix news, Director Bradford L. Smith sold 3,919 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,124.26, for a total value of $4,405,974.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 7,969 shares in the company, valued at $8,959,227.94. This represents a 32.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Spencer Adam Neumann sold 2,601 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,307.22, for a total value of $3,400,079.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 3,691 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,824,949.02. This represents a 41.34% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 150,226 shares of company stock valued at $183,849,784. Insiders own 1.37% of the company's stock.

Netflix Trading Up 2.6%

NFLX traded up $31.27 on Friday, reaching $1,211.64. 3,811,512 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,961,090. The company's 50 day moving average is $1,232.25 and its 200-day moving average is $1,093.48. The company has a market cap of $514.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.63, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.59. Netflix, Inc. has a twelve month low of $622.99 and a twelve month high of $1,341.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.34.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The Internet television network reported $7.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $7.07 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $11.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.04 billion. Netflix had a net margin of 24.58% and a return on equity of 42.50%. The company's revenue was up 15.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.88 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Netflix, Inc. will post 24.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Netflix Company Profile

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.