Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) Cut to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Netflix has been downgraded from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating by Wall Street Zen, a decision that reflects a cautious stance on the company's stock.
• Despite the downgrade, Netflix maintains a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" among analysts, with an average target price of $1,335.00.
• Insider transactions indicate significant selling activity, with notable sales by insiders David A. Hyman and Reed Hastings, totaling over $49 million and indicating a decrease in their positions.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on NFLX. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Netflix in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Netflix from $1,440.00 to $1,450.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Netflix in a research report on Saturday, September 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Netflix from $1,500.00 to $1,560.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Netflix from $1,230.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have assigned a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Netflix presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,335.00.

Netflix Stock Performance

NASDAQ:NFLX opened at $1,153.32 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $490.08 billion, a PE ratio of 49.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.59. The business's fifty day moving average price is $1,207.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $1,158.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 1.34. Netflix has a 12 month low of $677.88 and a 12 month high of $1,341.15.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.07 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $11.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.04 billion. Netflix had a return on equity of 42.50% and a net margin of 24.58%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 15.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $4.88 earnings per share. Netflix has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Q3 2025 guidance at 6.870-6.870 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Netflix will post 24.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Netflix

In other Netflix news, insider David A. Hyman sold 424 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,158.67, for a total value of $491,276.08. Following the transaction, the insider owned 31,610 shares in the company, valued at $36,625,558.70. The trade was a 1.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Reed Hastings sold 42,176 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,171.92, for a total transaction of $49,426,897.92. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 394 shares of the company's stock, valued at $461,736.48. The trade was a 99.07% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 104,100 shares of company stock worth $122,710,980 over the last three months. Insiders own 1.37% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Netflix during the second quarter valued at approximately $7,929,645,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Netflix by 128,553.9% during the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,881,129 shares of the Internet television network's stock valued at $6,536,466,000 after acquiring an additional 4,877,335 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Netflix during the first quarter valued at approximately $2,385,585,000. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC raised its holdings in shares of Netflix by 343,058.2% during the second quarter. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC now owns 2,463,876 shares of the Internet television network's stock valued at $3,299,450,000 after acquiring an additional 2,463,158 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Netflix by 57.3% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,393,064 shares of the Internet television network's stock valued at $3,164,134,000 after acquiring an additional 1,236,251 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.

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