Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) Reaches New 12-Month High - Here's What Happened

Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $1,211.77 and last traded at $1,211.57, with a volume of 2916636 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1,185.39.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays increased their price objective on Netflix from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. FBN Securities began coverage on shares of Netflix in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $1,165.00 price target for the company. Rosenblatt Securities upped their price target on Netflix from $1,494.00 to $1,514.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Netflix from $1,210.00 to $1,222.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Pivotal Research upped their price objective on shares of Netflix from $1,250.00 to $1,350.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,102.79.

Netflix Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The stock has a market cap of $514.32 billion, a PE ratio of 60.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.58. The company's 50 day moving average is $1,050.92 and its 200-day moving average is $969.04.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The Internet television network reported $6.61 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.74 by $0.87. The company had revenue of $10.54 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.51 billion. Netflix had a return on equity of 38.32% and a net margin of 22.34%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $8.28 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Netflix, Inc. will post 24.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Spencer Adam Neumann sold 2,601 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $921.72, for a total value of $2,397,393.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 3,691 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,402,068.52. The trade was a 41.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Reed Hastings sold 30,485 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $981.92, for a total transaction of $29,933,831.20. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $386,876.48. This represents a 98.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 133,348 shares of company stock valued at $139,087,908 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.37% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Netflix

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NFLX. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Netflix by 1.4% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 37,997,260 shares of the Internet television network's stock valued at $35,433,585,000 after acquiring an additional 509,255 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Netflix by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 20,887,090 shares of the Internet television network's stock valued at $18,617,081,000 after buying an additional 375,234 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in Netflix by 2.7% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 11,732,066 shares of the Internet television network's stock worth $10,940,505,000 after purchasing an additional 304,399 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Netflix by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,323,952 shares of the Internet television network's stock valued at $8,287,823,000 after buying an additional 175,596 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake 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 valued at $8,239,576,000 after purchasing an additional 8,827,662 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company's stock.

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.