Great Lakes Advisors LLC Makes New $1.89 Million Investment in Netflix, Inc. $NFLX

Great Lakes Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 26,413 shares of the Internet television network’s stock, valued at approximately $1,886,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of NFLX. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 351,493,659 shares during the last quarter. Shepherd Street Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Netflix in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,216,000. Morse Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in Netflix by 809.3% during the fourth quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc now owns 64,730 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $6,069,000 after buying an additional 57,611 shares during the last quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. boosted its holdings in Netflix by 798.5% during the fourth quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. now owns 42,542 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $3,989,000 after buying an additional 37,807 shares during the last quarter. Finally, New Mexico Educational Retirement Board grew its position in shares of Netflix by 900.0% during 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 buying an additional 172,989 shares during the period. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $92.00 price target (down from $115.00) on shares of Netflix in a research note on Monday, July 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Netflix from an “underweight” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $95.00 target price on shares of Netflix and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Netflix from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Netflix from $118.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-three have given a Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $103.48.

Key Stories Impacting Netflix

Here are the key news stories impacting Netflix this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Netflix continues to grow faster than many streaming rivals, and its lower valuation after the selloff could provide significant upside if revenue, advertising and engagement trends remain strong. A valuation model described the current setup as potentially asymmetric in investors’ favor. Netflix Is Down 40% From Its All-Time High Could Netflix Stock Double From Here?
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan analyst Doug Anmuth maintained an Overweight rating and an $85 price target, citing Netflix’s content pipeline and multiple initiatives to support engagement and revenue growth. The view suggests potential upside from current levels, although the analyst sees no single catalyst guaranteeing acceleration. Netflix Has No Single Silver Bullet
• Positive Sentiment: Netflix’s advertising-supported tier and broad content offering could make the company relatively resilient during a recession, as consumers may retain lower-cost entertainment subscriptions even amid economic pressure. Which Streaming Stock Would Hold Up Better in a Recession?
• Neutral Sentiment: Representatives for Meghan of Sussex reportedly held exploratory discussions about a possible role in a third season of The Gentlemen. Netflix has not ordered the season, so the potential casting has no immediate financial impact. Meghan of Sussex Eyes Role in Netflix Show The Gentlemen
• Negative Sentiment: With Netflix no longer emphasizing subscriber numbers, investors must rely more heavily on revenue growth, advertising performance, engagement and profitability metrics. That makes it harder to assess momentum and contributes to debate over whether the stock’s decline reflects a bargain or slowing growth. Netflix Is Down 40% From Its All-Time High
• Negative Sentiment: YouTube is reportedly offering creators substantial payments and warning that simultaneous Netflix deals could jeopardize marketing support and brand-campaign revenue. This could intensify competition for exclusive content and creator attention. YouTube Offers Creators Millions to Avoid Netflix Deals

Insider Transactions at Netflix

In related news, Director Reed Hastings sold 386,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.97, for a total transaction of $33,244,599.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 3,940 shares in the company, valued at $338,721.80. This trade represents a 98.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Theodore A. Sarandos sold 105,850 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.03, for a total transaction of $7,730,225.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 206,266 shares in the company, valued at $15,063,605.98. This represents a 33.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 600,295 shares of company stock valued at $49,056,671. 1.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Netflix Trading Down 0.7%

NASDAQ:NFLX opened at $79.59 on Friday. Netflix, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $65.08 and a fifty-two week high of $126.71. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $331.41 billion, a PE ratio of 25.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.52. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $74.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $84.34.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 16th. The Internet television network reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.01. Netflix had a return on equity of 40.02% and a net margin of 28.22%.The business had revenue of $12.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.58 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.72 EPS. Netflix’s quarterly revenue was up 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Netflix, Inc. will post 3.59 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.