Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) Trading 11.8% Higher After Strong Earnings

Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX - Get Free Report) rose 11.8% on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as high as $999.00 and last traded at $972.34. Approximately 7,201,798 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 81% from the average daily volume of 3,986,886 shares. The stock had previously closed at $869.68.

The Internet television network reported $4.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.20 by $0.07. Netflix had a net margin of 20.70% and a return on equity of 35.86%. The business had revenue of $10.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10,141,900 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.11 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Netflix from $750.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Netflix from $780.00 to $800.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded shares of Netflix from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $940.00 to $1,150.00 in a research report on Wednesday. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Netflix from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, December 21st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on shares of Netflix from $625.00 to $780.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $976.55.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Netflix news, Chairman Reed Hastings sold 48,363 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $896.60, for a total value of $43,362,265.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 114 shares in the company, valued at $102,212.40. This represents a 99.76 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Richard N. Barton sold 5,698 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $756.00, for a total value of $4,307,688.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 246 shares of the company's stock, valued at $185,976. This trade represents a 95.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 152,198 shares of company stock worth $127,616,898. Company insiders own 1.76% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of NFLX. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of Netflix by 27.1% in the 2nd quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 544 shares of the Internet television network's stock valued at $367,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the period. Certified Advisory Corp grew its stake in shares of Netflix by 7.4% during the 2nd quarter. Certified Advisory Corp now owns 1,156 shares of the Internet television network's stock worth $780,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its position in shares of Netflix by 80.7% in the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 16,273 shares of the Internet television network's stock valued at $10,982,000 after acquiring an additional 7,267 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC raised its position in Netflix by 2.9% during the second quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 6,552 shares of the Internet television network's stock worth $4,422,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lombard Odier Asset Management Europe Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Netflix in the second quarter valued at approximately $3,275,000. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Netflix Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $414.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $886.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $762.07.

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.

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