Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) Trading Up 1% – Still a Buy?

Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX)’s stock price was up 1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $927.18 and last traded at $903.95. Approximately 2,265,139 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 33% from the average daily volume of 3,382,796 shares. The stock had previously closed at $895.10.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on NFLX shares. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Netflix from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $975.00 to $1,200.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Netflix from $1,050.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Netflix from $850.00 to $960.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $1,175.00 target price (up previously from $1,000.00) on shares of Netflix in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Netflix in a report on Monday. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Netflix currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,014.26.

Netflix Stock Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $950.30 and a 200 day moving average of $846.09. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $389.10 billion, a PE ratio of 45.74, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.38.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The Internet television network reported $4.27 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.20 by $0.07. Netflix had a return on equity of 38.32% and a net margin of 22.34%. The business had revenue of $10.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.11 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Netflix, Inc. will post 24.58 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Gregory K. Peters sold 4,939 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,030.00, for a total value of $5,087,170.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,950 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,338,500. This represents a 27.61 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Richard N. Barton sold 6,364 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $879.38, for a total value of $5,596,374.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 246 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $216,327.48. The trade was a 96.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 288,103 shares of company stock worth $279,142,041 over the last ninety days. 1.76% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Netflix

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of Netflix by 22.7% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 848,150 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $760,918,000 after purchasing an additional 156,958 shares in the last quarter. Haven Private LLC bought a new stake in shares of Netflix in the 4th quarter valued at about $733,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Netflix by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,579,404 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $1,829,494,000 after acquiring an additional 29,726 shares during the last quarter. Sigma Planning Corp lifted its stake in shares of Netflix by 7.4% in the 4th quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 5,572 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $4,966,000 after acquiring an additional 386 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Netflix by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 612,458 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $434,398,000 after acquiring an additional 11,921 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.