Wedbush Securities Inc. Trims Stake in Netflix, Inc. $NFLX

Wedbush Securities Inc. lowered its position in Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) by 5.5% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 164,523 shares of the Internet television network’s stock after selling 9,615 shares during the quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc.’s holdings in Netflix were worth $11,747,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Imprint Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Netflix in the third quarter worth $25,000. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC purchased a new position in Netflix during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Netflix during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Netflix in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, Jessup Wealth Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Netflix in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Netflix from $128.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Netflix from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Phillip Securities upgraded shares of Netflix from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Sunday, July 19th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $110.00 target price on shares of Netflix in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Netflix in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-three have assigned a Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Netflix presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.19.

Netflix Trading Up 2.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:NFLX opened at $81.72 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $340.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.72, a PEG ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. Netflix, Inc. has a 1 year low of $65.08 and a 1 year high of $126.71. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $74.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $84.33.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 16th. The Internet television network reported $0.80 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 company had revenue of $12.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.58 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.72 earnings per share. Netflix’s 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 year.

Netflix News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Netflix this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square reportedly added approximately 13.1 million Netflix shares, making NFLX one of the hedge fund’s new concentrated holdings. The move may bolster investor confidence in Netflix’s valuation and long-term earnings potential. Bill Ackman portfolio overhaul article
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentators point to Netflix’s rapidly expanding advertising business, a potential $3 billion advertising revenue opportunity, continued global expansion and margin growth as catalysts for a possible recovery toward $100 and beyond. Record share buybacks could further support earnings per share. Netflix stock price prediction article
• Positive Sentiment: Netflix is being described as an undervalued long-term holding, with bullish arguments centered on double-digit revenue growth, free-cash-flow generation and the ability to monetize live events and lower-priced ad-supported plans. Netflix five-year outlook article
• Neutral Sentiment: The Netflix preview of Grand Theft Auto VI attracted significant online attention and traffic, but the immediate stock-market beneficiary appears to be Take-Two Interactive, the game’s publisher, rather than Netflix. GTA 6 Netflix preview article
• Negative Sentiment: Some analysts argue that Netflix’s growth is moderating and that Alphabet offers stronger diversification, advertising exposure and valuation. Recent commentary also identifies resistance near $82 and muted enthusiasm following the latest earnings report. NFLX versus GOOGL article
• Negative Sentiment: Reported insider activity remains a potential overhang: executives and directors made numerous sales and no purchases over the past six months. Investors may interpret the selling as reduced insider conviction, although it may also reflect routine diversification. Netflix ad monetization and market resistance article

Insider Buying and Selling at Netflix

In other news, CEO Gregory K. Peters sold 27,312 shares of Netflix stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.54, for a total value of $2,008,524.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 120,931 shares in the company, valued at $8,893,265.74. The trade was a 18.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Theodore A. Sarandos sold 105,850 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 206,266 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,063,605.98. The trade was a 33.91% 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. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 600,295 shares of company stock worth $49,056,671. 1.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.