Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) Holdings Lowered by Banco Santander S.A.

Key Points

• Banco Santander S.A. reduced its stake in Netflix by 17.1%, now holding 59,362 shares valued at approximately $55.36 million, making it the bank's 26th largest position.
• Several institutional investors, including GAMMA Investing LLC and Northern Trust Corp, significantly increased their stakes in Netflix during the first quarter, with GAMMA raising its position by over 109,000%.
• Netflix's recent quarterly earnings surpassed analysts' expectations, reporting $7.19 earnings per share on revenue of $11.08 billion, showing a year-over-year revenue increase of 15.9%.

Banco Santander S.A. trimmed its stake in shares of Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX - Free Report) by 17.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 59,362 shares of the Internet television network's stock after selling 12,252 shares during the quarter. Netflix comprises 0.6% of Banco Santander S.A.'s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Banco Santander S.A.'s holdings in Netflix were worth $55,357,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in NFLX. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Netflix by 109,524.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,835,722 shares of the Internet television network's stock worth $8,239,576,000 after buying an additional 8,827,662 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised 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 in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its position in shares of Netflix by 935.7% during the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 461,900 shares of the Internet television network's stock worth $411,701,000 after buying an additional 417,300 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in shares of Netflix by 42.0% during the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,387,159 shares of the Internet television network's stock worth $1,293,567,000 after buying an additional 410,235 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in shares of Netflix during the 4th quarter worth about $355,076,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on NFLX. Evercore ISI restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Netflix in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,425.00 price objective (up previously from $1,200.00) on shares of Netflix in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Pivotal Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Netflix in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of Netflix from $1,200.00 to $1,425.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $1,500.00 price objective on shares of Netflix in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,297.66.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Reed Hastings sold 9,673 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,329.11, for a total value of $12,856,481.03. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $523,669.34. The trade was a 96.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Spencer Adam Neumann sold 2,601 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,307.22, for a total transaction of $3,400,079.22. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 3,691 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,824,949.02. The trade was a 41.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 123,830 shares of company stock valued at $153,102,930 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.37% of the company's stock.

Netflix Price Performance

Shares of Netflix stock opened at $1,158.60 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $1,234.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1,082.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Netflix, Inc. has a 1-year low of $587.04 and a 1-year high of $1,341.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $492.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.37, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.59.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The Internet television network reported $7.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $7.07 by $0.12. Netflix had a net margin of 24.58% and a return on equity of 42.50%. The business had revenue of $11.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.88 earnings per share. Netflix's revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Netflix, Inc. will post 24.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Netflix 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.

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