Smithfield Trust Co Grows Stake in Netflix, Inc. $NFLX

Smithfield Trust Co raised its holdings in shares of Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) by 941.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,720 shares of the Internet television network’s stock after buying an additional 7,883 shares during the period. Smithfield Trust Co’s holdings in Netflix were worth $824,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Netflix by 912.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 390,014,981 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $36,567,805,000 after purchasing an additional 351,493,659 shares in the last quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. increased its position in shares of Netflix by 912.3% during the fourth quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 36,940,035 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $3,463,498,000 after purchasing an additional 33,290,988 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in shares of Netflix by 639.9% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 34,871,951 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $3,269,594,000 after purchasing an additional 30,158,900 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its position in shares of Netflix by 916.1% during the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 26,522,252 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $2,486,726,000 after purchasing an additional 23,912,151 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Netflix by 907.5% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 20,490,399 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $1,921,180,000 after acquiring an additional 18,456,524 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider David A. Hyman sold 5,722 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.08, for a total transaction of $503,993.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 316,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,842,088. This represents a 1.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, Director Reed Hastings sold 420,550 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.49, for a total transaction of $40,158,319.50. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 3,940 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $376,230.60. This represents a 99.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 1,422,769 shares of company stock valued at $135,144,073 over the last ninety days. 1.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

More Netflix News

Here are the key news stories impacting Netflix this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America reiterated a Buy rating on Netflix with a $125 price target, citing optimism about the company’s expanding advertising business and ad placements, which could support future revenue growth. Bank of America Reiterates Buy Rating on Netflix (NFLX) Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary continue to frame Netflix’s ad tier as a meaningful long-term growth opportunity, with one report nudging fair value estimates higher and pointing to improved investor confidence around content discipline. How The Netflix (NFLX) Investment Story Is Shifting Around Ads Content And Deal Discipline
• Positive Sentiment: Netflix’s push into live sports is being viewed as a new revenue catalyst, with sports-related engagement helping drive sign-ups in key markets such as Japan, which could support subscriber growth. NFLX Rides on Sports Content Engagement: New Revenue Growth Catalyst?
• Neutral Sentiment: Netflix is getting elevated attention from Zacks users and analysts, but the coverage largely reiterates the existing investment debate rather than introducing a major new catalyst. Netflix, Inc. (NFLX) is Attracting Investor Attention: Here is What You Should Know
• Neutral Sentiment: Another market note says Netflix continues to attract strong analyst support, with a consensus view leaning toward Moderate Buy, reinforcing stable sentiment around the name. Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts
• Negative Sentiment: Netflix’s announcement that it is investing in an AI animation studio drew criticism online, with some viewers calling the project “AI slop,” which could create reputational headwinds if consumer backlash grows. Netflix is betting big on an AI animation studio — even as 51% of people say they don’t want generative AI content
• Negative Sentiment: While live sports may boost engagement, the strategy also comes with heavier content spending, which could pressure near-term margins and limit upside in the short run. NFLX Rides on Sports Content Engagement: New Revenue Growth Catalyst?

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NFLX has been the topic of several recent research reports. President Capital upped their price target on shares of Netflix from $133.00 to $134.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Freedom Capital raised shares of Netflix from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Arete Research raised shares of Netflix from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Daiwa Securities Group increased their price objective on shares of Netflix from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Netflix from $134.00 to $128.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have assigned a Buy rating and sixteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $114.82.

Netflix Stock Performance

Shares of NFLX stock opened at $88.60 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Netflix, Inc. has a 12 month low of $75.01 and a 12 month high of $134.12. The company has a market cap of $373.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.62, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.55. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $93.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $93.90.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 16th. The Internet television network reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.47. Netflix had a net margin of 28.52% and a return on equity of 40.92%. The company had revenue of $12.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.17 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $6.61 earnings per share. Netflix’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.2% on a year-over-year basis. Netflix has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.780-0.780 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Netflix, Inc. will post 3.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Netflix

Netflix, Inc (NASDAQ: NFLX) is a global entertainment company that provides subscription-based streaming of films, television series, documentaries and other video content. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph and headquartered in Los Gatos, California, the company began as a DVD-by-mail rental service and introduced streaming video in 2007. Netflix later expanded into producing and distributing original programming, beginning notable original hits in the 2010s, and now operates a content production and distribution ecosystem alongside its licensing activity.

The company’s primary product is its on-demand streaming service, which can be accessed on a wide range of internet-connected devices and delivered through a suite of apps and web platforms.