Renaissance Technologies LLC Sells 7,175,826 Shares of Netflix, Inc. $NFLX

Renaissance Technologies LLC lessened its holdings in Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) by 100.0% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 2,461 shares of the Internet television network’s stock after selling 7,175,826 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC’s holdings in Netflix were worth $235,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of NFLX. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Netflix by 912.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 390,014,981 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $36,567,805,000 after buying an additional 351,493,659 shares during the period. Shepherd Street Advisors LLC bought a new position in Netflix during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,216,000. Morse Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in Netflix by 809.3% in the 4th quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc now owns 64,730 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $6,069,000 after acquiring an additional 57,611 shares in the last quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. raised its holdings in Netflix by 798.5% in the 4th quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. now owns 42,542 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $3,989,000 after acquiring an additional 37,807 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New Mexico Educational Retirement Board lifted its position in shares of Netflix by 900.0% in the 4th quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 192,210 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $18,022,000 after acquiring an additional 172,989 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on NFLX. Pivotal Research decreased their price objective on Netflix from $96.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 17th. UBS Group reduced their target price on Netflix from $130.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Daiwa Securities Group lifted their price target on shares of Netflix from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of Netflix from $112.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities set a $75.00 price objective on shares of Netflix and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-three have assigned a Buy rating, seventeen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Netflix has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.48.

Netflix Price Performance

Shares of NFLX stock opened at $80.22 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $74.43 and its 200 day simple moving average is $84.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The firm has a market cap of $334.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.25, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.52. Netflix, Inc. has a one year low of $65.08 and a one year high of $126.71.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The Internet television network reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.01. Netflix had a return on equity of 40.02% and a net margin of 28.22%.The firm had revenue of $12.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.72 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Netflix, Inc. will post 3.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider David A. Hyman sold 5,723 shares of Netflix stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.85, for a total transaction of $416,920.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 316,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,027,885. This trade represents a 1.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Spencer Adam Neumann sold 9,248 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief financial officer owned 73,787 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,592,316.73. This trade represents a 11.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 600,295 shares of company stock worth $49,056,671 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.24% of the company’s stock.

Netflix News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Netflix this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bill Ackman returns: Pershing Square disclosed a roughly 4.9% portfolio position in Netflix, reversing its earlier exit at a reported loss of about $400 million. Ackman’s renewed conviction reflects expectations for double-digit revenue growth, margin expansion and continued streaming leadership. What’s Going On With Netflix Stock Wednesday?
• Positive Sentiment: Advertising remains a growth catalyst: Analysts highlighted Netflix’s rapidly scaling ad-supported business, including new advertising tools and live programming that could help generate billions in ad revenue and support longer-term revenue expansion. NFLX’s Ad Business Focus
• Positive Sentiment: Valuation attracts bargain hunters: With the stock down about 43% from its peak and trading near 21 times forward earnings, investors are comparing Netflix’s valuation with prior major pullbacks and arguing that the risk-reward profile has improved. Several commentators and CNBC’s Jason Snipe also endorsed the shares. Netflix Trades at 21 Times Forward Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader market rotation helped: Netflix participated in a shift away from semiconductor stocks and toward beaten-down software and technology shares. This suggests part of the move reflected sector positioning rather than a new company-specific operating announcement. Netflix, Salesforce, and Adobe Rally
• Negative Sentiment: Copyright lawsuit adds risk: The band Demon Hunter sued Netflix over the title and alleged intellectual-property issues involving KPop Demon Hunters. The legal action introduces potential costs and reputational risk, although its financial impact is currently unclear. Netflix sued by band Demon Hunter

Netflix Profile

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.