Netflix, Inc. $NFLX Stock: China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. Increases Position

Key Points

• China Universal Asset Management increased its Netflix stake by 9% in the third quarter, purchasing 19,088 additional shares and bringing its holdings to 232,225 shares valued at approximately $16.3 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 80.93% of Netflix.
• Netflix exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting EPS of $0.87 versus the $0.82 consensus estimate, while revenue reached $12.87 billion, up 11.9% year over year. The stock opened at $62.05, near its 52-week low of $61.39.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: Netflix has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an $89.14 price target, but concerns about slowing engagement, competition from YouTube and risks to advertising execution have prompted several analysts to lower ratings or targets.

China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX - Free Report) by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 232,225 shares of the Internet television network's stock after purchasing an additional 19,088 shares during the quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Netflix were worth $16,325,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. TOWER TRUST & INVESTMENT Co grew its holdings in Netflix by 3.3% during the third quarter. TOWER TRUST & INVESTMENT Co now owns 13,423 shares of the Internet television network's stock worth $934,000 after acquiring an additional 435 shares during the period. Childress Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Netflix by 3.2% in the third quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 16,677 shares of the Internet television network's stock worth $1,160,000 after acquiring an additional 510 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its holdings in Netflix by 22.7% in the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 255,060 shares of the Internet television network's stock valued at $17,747,000 after acquiring an additional 47,216 shares during the period. North Dakota State Investment Board lifted its holdings in Netflix by 3.5% in the third quarter. North Dakota State Investment Board now owns 128,013 shares of the Internet television network's stock valued at $8,907,000 after acquiring an additional 4,306 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Insights Inc. lifted its holdings in Netflix by 27.6% in the third quarter. Financial Insights Inc. now owns 7,236 shares of the Internet television network's stock valued at $503,000 after acquiring an additional 1,566 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More Netflix News

Here are the key news stories impacting Netflix this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Some investors view the sell-off as a buying opportunity. Morningstar reportedly sees approximately 30% upside, while other bullish analyses point to Netflix’s strong free cash flow, healthy balance sheet, international growth and expected 2026 operating-margin expansion to 31.5%. Morningstar Netflix Analysis
• Positive Sentiment: Netflix expects advertising revenue to grow more than 80% in 2026. If the company can overcome rollout delays and improve execution, the advertising business could provide a meaningful new growth and monetization stream. Netflix Advertising Business Analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: Director Bradford Smith sold 17,980 shares worth approximately $1.15 million under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. The sale reduced his holdings by 18.4%, but its planned nature makes it a limited signal about management’s current outlook. Netflix Insider Sale
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are increasingly concerned that members are watching less, particularly in the United States. The resulting questions about engagement, cultural relevance and competition from short-form video, artificial intelligence and other entertainment platforms have extended the post-earnings sell-off. Netflix Attention Economy Analysis
• Negative Sentiment: YouTube’s strong living-room advertising performance is raising concerns that Alphabet’s platform is taking television viewing time and advertising dollars that Netflix hopes to capture. YouTube Living-Room Competition
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts have reduced ratings or price targets, citing slower growth, limited upside from additional price increases and advertising execution risks. Netflix’s roughly $2 billion 2026 advertising forecast is also being viewed as modest relative to competitors such as YouTube. Netflix Price Increase Downgrade

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on NFLX. Wolfe Research cut shares of Netflix from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Citizens Jmp reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Netflix in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. Rosenblatt Securities set a $71.00 price objective on shares of Netflix and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $80.00 price objective (down from $95.00) on shares of Netflix in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. Finally, Yorkville Ives started coverage on shares of Netflix in a research report on Monday, October 5th. They set an "in-line" rating and a $75.00 target price on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have given a Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $89.14.

Netflix Stock Up 0.1%

Netflix stock opened at $62.05 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $254.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.62. Netflix, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $61.39 and a fifty-two week high of $116.73. The stock's fifty day moving average is $73.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $81.71.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 20th. The Internet television network reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $12.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.87 billion. Netflix had a return on equity of 42.69% and a net margin of 29.69%. The business's revenue was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.59 EPS. Analysts predict that Netflix, Inc. will post 3.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Netflix news, CEO Gregory K. Peters sold 27,312 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.54, for a total value of $2,008,524.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 120,931 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,893,265.74. This represents a 18.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Spencer Neumann sold 9,248 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.79, for a total transaction of $700,905.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 73,787 shares in the company, valued at $5,592,316.73. This represents a 11.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 197,025 shares of company stock worth $14,283,453 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.24% of the company's stock.

About Netflix

Netflix, Inc NASDAQ: NFLX is a global entertainment company that provides subscription-based streaming services. Its platform offers a broad selection of television series, films, documentaries, stand-up specials and other programming, including content produced by Netflix and licensed from third-party studios and creators.

The company also develops and distributes original productions under the Netflix brand and has expanded into additional entertainment offerings, including mobile and cloud-based games in select markets and live programming.

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