Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Grows Stock Position in Netflix, Inc. $NFLX

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its stake in shares of Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) by 2.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 312,662 shares of the Internet television network’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,800 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Netflix were worth $30,062,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of NFLX. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Netflix by 912.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 390,014,981 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $36,567,805,000 after buying an additional 351,493,659 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Netflix by 927.6% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 176,780,995 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $16,574,986,000 after buying an additional 159,578,053 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Netflix by 892.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 99,598,678 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $9,305,336,000 after acquiring an additional 89,558,684 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in Netflix by 859.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 89,341,444 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $8,376,656,000 after acquiring an additional 80,025,890 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted its stake in Netflix by 903.0% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 85,349,973 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $8,002,414,000 after acquiring an additional 76,840,318 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on NFLX. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Netflix in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Netflix from $128.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $92.00 price objective (down from $115.00) on shares of Netflix in a research report on Monday. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $125.00 target price on shares of Netflix in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Finally, China Renaissance increased their target price on Netflix from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have issued a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Netflix currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $111.29.

Netflix Stock Performance

Shares of Netflix stock opened at $73.67 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $310.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.52. Netflix, Inc. has a 52 week low of $70.86 and a 52 week high of $127.75. The company has a quick ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $80.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $87.17.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 16th. The Internet television network reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $12.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.17 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $6.61 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 16.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Netflix, Inc. will post 3.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Netflix

In other Netflix news, Director Bradford L. Smith sold 35,990 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.52, for a total value of $2,789,944.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 79,690 shares in the company, valued at $6,177,568.80. This represents a 31.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction 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 Gregory K. Peters sold 27,312 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.69, for a total transaction of $2,422,301.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 120,931 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,725,370.39. This represents a 18.42% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 899,839 shares of company stock worth $80,141,661. Insiders own 1.24% of the company’s stock.

Key Netflix News

Here are the key news stories impacting Netflix this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Investors are positioning for Netflix’s Q2 earnings, with some analysts and strategists still seeing upside if the company can show resilient subscriber growth, stronger ad revenue, and continued execution ahead of the report. All Eyes on Netflix Stock Ahead of Earnings; Here’s What Benchmark Expects
• Positive Sentiment: Netflix’s push into live sports is a potential growth catalyst, after it secured exclusive MLB Home Run Derby streaming rights, showing it is expanding beyond traditional scripted content to deepen engagement and add new revenue opportunities. Netflix (NFLX) Secures Exclusive MLB Home Run Derby Streaming Rights
• Positive Sentiment: Some bullish commentary argues the stock could rebound sharply if earnings surprise to the upside, with options activity implying a potentially large post-earnings move. Netflix’s Q3 Earnings Report Could Lead to $21.5 Billion Swing in Market Value
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street remains focused on the same key issues into earnings: engagement trends, ad-tier monetization, content pipeline quality, and whether Netflix can justify its valuation after a steep decline from recent highs. Netflix’s next growth chapter hinges on keeping viewers hooked
• Negative Sentiment: Investor concern is still being driven by slowing engagement, weaker viewer retention, and signs that Netflix may need to prove it can keep users hooked as competition from YouTube, traditional media, and mobile viewing intensifies. Netflix’s next growth chapter hinges on keeping viewers hooked
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory risk is also back in focus after criticism over rising subscription prices, which could add pressure if policymakers target streaming pricing or consumer practices. Your Netflix bill is up 29% in just over a year. It’s time for Washington to step in.

Netflix Company 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.