Morgan Stanley Has Lowered Expectations for Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) Stock Price

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) had its price target decreased by Morgan Stanley from $83.00 to $80.00 in a research report issued on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the Internet television network’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price suggests a potential upside of 14.78% from the company’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on NFLX. DZ Bank reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Netflix in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $110.00 price objective (up from $100.00) on shares of Netflix in a research note on Monday, September 14th. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $95.00 price target (up from $84.00) on shares of Netflix in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Itau BBA Securities cut their price target on Netflix from $151.40 to $96.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Seaport Research Partners lowered Netflix from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have issued a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $94.70.

Netflix Price Performance

NASDAQ NFLX opened at $69.70 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $290.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.94, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $75.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $81.64. Netflix has a 1 year low of $65.08 and a 1 year high of $124.86.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The Internet television network reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $12.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.58 billion. Netflix had a return on equity of 40.02% and a net margin of 28.22%.The firm’s revenue was up 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.72 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Netflix will post 3.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Netflix

In other news, CFO Spencer Neumann sold 9,248 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief financial officer owned 73,787 shares in the company, valued at $5,592,316.73. This trade represents a 11.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider David A. Hyman sold 5,723 shares of Netflix stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.85, for a total transaction of $416,920.55. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 316,100 shares in the company, valued at $23,027,885. This represents a 1.78% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 179,045 shares of company stock valued at $13,132,194 in the last ninety days. 1.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Netflix

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. American Capital Advisory LLC raised its stake in Netflix by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. American Capital Advisory LLC now owns 13,990 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $1,345,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. CWS Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Netflix by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. CWS Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,612 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $347,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Warner Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Netflix by 2.2% during the first quarter. Warner Group LLC now owns 5,230 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $503,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the period. Financial Avengers Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Netflix by 9.8% during the first quarter. Financial Avengers Inc. now owns 1,290 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $124,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the period. Finally, PAX Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Netflix by 2.5% in the first quarter. PAX Financial Group LLC now owns 4,847 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $466,000 after buying an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Netflix

Here are the key news stories impacting Netflix this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Netflix receives a $2.8 billion breakup fee. Paramount paid Netflix to abandon its proposed $82.7 billion Warner Bros. deal, providing a substantial cash benefit while allowing Netflix to avoid taking on a large acquisition and integration burden. Paramount paid Netflix $2.8 billion to walk away from its Warner Bros. deal
• Positive Sentiment: The new Paramount-Skydance/Warner Bros. rival carries substantial debt. The merged company reportedly has about $80 billion of debt and significant interest obligations, potentially limiting its ability to spend aggressively on content or compete with Netflix on price and streaming investment. Skydance becomes a media giant with an $80 billion debt load
• Positive Sentiment: Disney is licensing content to Netflix. Deals involving titles such as “Percy Jackson” and “Ice Age” reinforce Netflix’s distribution scale and suggest traditional media companies may increasingly rely on its platform as linear television declines. Disney is opening the door to Netflix
• Neutral Sentiment: A proposed U.S. production tax credit could reduce content costs. Senator Tim Scott’s bill would provide a potentially transferable 20%–30% credit for qualifying domestic film and television production, but it has not been enacted and would apply to productions beginning after 2026.
• Neutral Sentiment: Co-CEO Ted Sarandos discussed repeatedly rereading Joseph Conrad’s Typhoon rather than management books. The comments provide cultural insight but have little direct effect on Netflix’s earnings outlook. Netflix co-CEO discusses his favorite book
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned about maturing growth. Recent revenue growth was 13.4%, with management expecting further deceleration, while rising content expenses and live-sports rights could pressure margins. Analysts also cite Netflix’s valuation and intense streaming competition as risks. Rising live sports costs and Netflix margins

About Netflix

Netflix, Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) is a global entertainment company that operates a subscription-based streaming service. It offers a broad range of television series, films, documentaries, and other programming, including original productions developed under the Netflix brand and licensed content from third-party studios.

The company also provides advertising-supported viewing options in some markets and has expanded into related entertainment categories, including mobile and cloud-based games, live programming, and consumer products associated with selected titles.