Morgan Stanley Issues Positive Forecast for Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) Stock Price

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX - Free Report) had its price objective upped by Morgan Stanley from $1,450.00 to $1,500.00 in a report published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the Internet television network's stock.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Netflix in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Barclays restated a "sell" rating and issued a $1,100.00 price target (up previously from $1,000.00) on shares of Netflix in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $1,150.00 price objective (up previously from $1,100.00) on shares of Netflix in a research note on Friday, April 18th. Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price objective on shares of Netflix from $1,514.00 to $1,515.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Macquarie lifted their price objective on shares of Netflix from $1,150.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,275.30.

Netflix Stock Down 5.1%

Shares of NFLX stock traded down $64.93 during trading on Friday, reaching $1,209.24. The company's stock had a trading volume of 10,678,762 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,787,074. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 1.20. Netflix has a 1-year low of $587.04 and a 1-year high of $1,341.15. The company has a market capitalization of $514.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.59. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $1,232.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $1,060.77.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The Internet television network reported $7.19 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 43.00%. Netflix's revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.88 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Netflix will post 24.58 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Netflix news, Director Jay C. Hoag sold 32,515 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,101.97, for a total transaction of $35,830,554.55. Following the transaction, the director owned 79,040 shares of the company's stock, valued at $87,099,708.80. The trade was a 29.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Reed Hastings sold 26,977 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,133.05, for a total value of $30,566,289.85. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 394 shares in the company, valued at $446,421.70. The trade was a 98.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 186,723 shares of company stock worth $223,307,201 in the last ninety days. 1.37% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Netflix

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of NFLX. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp lifted its holdings in Netflix by 15.3% during the second quarter. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 38,067 shares of the Internet television network's stock worth $50,977,000 after acquiring an additional 5,040 shares during the period. Wiser Wealth Management Inc lifted its holdings in Netflix by 8.6% in the 2nd quarter. Wiser Wealth Management Inc now owns 266 shares of the Internet television network's stock worth $356,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the period. EWA LLC raised its stake in Netflix by 7.2% during the second quarter. EWA LLC now owns 746 shares of the Internet television network's stock valued at $999,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Tanager Wealth Management LLP increased its holdings in shares of Netflix by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. Tanager Wealth Management LLP now owns 358 shares of the Internet television network's stock worth $479,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Warren Street Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Netflix by 3.4% in the second quarter. Warren Street Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 855 shares of the Internet television network's stock worth $1,145,000 after acquiring an additional 28 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.