Netflix, Inc. $NFLX Stock: Wedbush Securities Inc. Cuts Stake

Wedbush Securities Inc. lowered its stake in Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) by 9.1% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 149,484 shares of the Internet television network’s stock after selling 15,039 shares during the quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc.’s holdings in Netflix were worth $10,401,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in NFLX. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Netflix in the second quarter worth about $24,902,221,000. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Netflix by 4.9% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 180,129,582 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $12,861,252,000 after acquiring an additional 8,474,820 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in Netflix by 4.3% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 57,942,812 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $5,571,201,000 after acquiring an additional 2,376,349 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in Netflix during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,906,482,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in Netflix during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,886,526,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Netflix

Here are the key news stories impacting Netflix this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Netflix reported third-quarter EPS of $0.87, ahead of the $0.82 consensus estimate, while revenue reached $12.87 billion. Operating margin rose to 34.6%, supporting the argument that the core streaming business remains highly profitable. Can Netflix Stock Hold Margin Gains as Content Spending Keeps Growing?
• Positive Sentiment: Longer-term bulls argue that Netflix’s profitability, systematic share repurchases, local-language content, and continued subscriber retention could create meaningful upside after the sell-off. Bill Ackman has also returned to the stock and expects annualized returns above 20%. Bill Ackman Lost $400 Million on Netflix
• Positive Sentiment: Ark Invest’s Cathie Wood bought 18,000 Netflix shares, signaling that some growth-oriented investors view the two-year-low valuation as an opportunity. Cathie Wood Just Bought Netflix Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Netflix is reportedly planning layoffs at its Bay Area headquarters. The cuts could reduce costs, but they also raise questions about operating priorities and employee productivity. Netflix Stock Slips as Layoffs Hit Bay Area Headquarters
• Neutral Sentiment: Paramount Skydance’s completed merger highlights intensifying competition for scale and content across the entertainment industry, potentially increasing pressure on Netflix to sustain its content advantage. Could Skydance Be Bigger Than Disney?
• Negative Sentiment: Management reduced its 2026 advertising-revenue outlook to approximately $2.7 billion from about $3 billion. Softer ad growth undermines a major part of Netflix’s expansion thesis and overshadowed the earnings beat. Netflix Cut Its 2026 Ad Forecast by $300 Million
• Negative Sentiment: Disappointing fourth-quarter revenue guidance and decelerating growth have led investors to discount the strong quarterly results. Netflix’s reduced 2026 free-cash-flow outlook is another concern as content spending continues to rise. Netflix Has Lower FCF Guidance
• Negative Sentiment: Several analysts lowered their price targets or ratings after the report. One fair-value estimate fell from $92.62 to $86.24, while UBS, Guggenheim, and Needham adopted more cautious views. Netflix Stock Fair Value Falls After Cautious Q3 Analyst Revisions
• Negative Sentiment: Reports indicate viewing time is declining even though subscribers are staying, suggesting weaker engagement. YouTube and lower-cost streaming alternatives may also be contributing to slower revenue growth. Netflix Is Losing Viewers

Insider Transactions at Netflix

In related news, insider David A. Hyman sold 5,723 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.85, for a total value of $416,920.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 316,100 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,027,885. The trade was a 1.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Spencer Neumann sold 9,248 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $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. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 179,045 shares of company stock worth $13,132,194. Company insiders own 1.24% of the company’s stock.

Netflix Price Performance

Shares of NFLX stock traded down $1.20 during trading on Friday, hitting $65.85. The company had a trading volume of 37,803,941 shares, compared to its average volume of 41,651,352. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $74.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $79.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $270.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.62. Netflix, Inc. has a 52 week low of $64.10 and a 52 week high of $116.73.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 20th. The Internet television network reported $0.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.05. Netflix had a net margin of 29.69% and a return on equity of 42.69%. The business had revenue of $12.87 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.87 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.59 earnings per share. Netflix’s quarterly revenue was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Netflix, Inc. will post 3.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on NFLX. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $80.00 target price (down from $95.00) on shares of Netflix in a report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird set a $90.00 price target on shares of Netflix and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Barclays set a $65.00 price target on shares of Netflix and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Netflix in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Seaport Research Partners set a $85.00 price objective on Netflix in a research report on Wednesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have issued a Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.59.

Netflix Profile

Netflix, Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) is a global entertainment company that provides subscription-based streaming services. Its platform offers a broad selection of television series, films, documentaries, stand-up specials and other programming, including content produced by Netflix and licensed from third-party studios and creators.

The company also develops and distributes original productions under the Netflix brand and has expanded into additional entertainment offerings, including mobile and cloud-based games in select markets and live programming.