Analysts Ponder Whether Netflix Is a Stock to Buy After Earnings

By Chris Lange Published Jan 20, 10:32AM EST

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Analysts Ponder Whether Netflix Is a Stock to Buy After Earnings — © artisteer / iStock

Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX | NFLX Price Prediction) reported its most recent quarterly results after the closing bell Tuesday. Despite a solid performance in the fourth quarter, analysts were somewhat mixed on the online video streamer after the fact.

24/7 Wall St. has included some highlights from the report, as well as what analysts said afterward.

The company said that it had $1.19 in earnings per share (EPS) and $6.64 billion in revenue. The consensus estimates had called for $1.39 in EPS and $6.63 billion in revenue. In the fourth quarter of last year, Netflix reported $1.30 in EPS and $5.57 billion in revenue.

During the latest quarter, global net subscription additions totaled 8.51 million. Note that Netflix now has 203.66 million total memberships worldwide.

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Looking ahead to the first quarter, the company projects $2.97 in EPS on $7.13 billion in revenue. At the same time, it expects to see net subscriber adds of 6.00 million. The consensus estimates call for $2.10 in EPS on $7.01 billion in revenue.

Netflix finished the quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $8.21 billion, up from $5.02 billion at the end of the 2019 full year.

Here’s how analysts responded:

Barclays issued an Overweight rating and raised its price target to $650 from $550.
Rosenblatt Securities reiterated it as Neutral and raised its price target to $450 from $425.
Credit Suisse reiterated a Neutral rating and raised its price target to $586 from $525.
Benchmark reiterated a Sell rating and raised its price target to $485 from $412.
Monness Crespi & Hardt reiterated it as a Buy and raised the price target to $650 from $600.
Pivotal Research reiterated a Buy rating and raised the price target to $750 from $660.
Canaccord Genuity reiterated a Buy rating and raised its price target to $670 from $630.
Deutsche Bank reiterated a Buy rating and raised its price target to $600 from $580.

Netflix stock traded up about 13% to $567.88 on Wednesday, in a 52-week range of $290.25 to $577.77. The consensus price target is $554.02.

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About the Author Chris Lange →

Chris Lange is a writer for 24/7 Wall St., based in Houston. He has covered financial markets over the past decade with an emphasis on healthcare, tech, and IPOs. During this time, he has published thousands of articles with insightful analysis across these complex fields. Currently, Lange's focus is on military and geopolitical topics.

Lange's work has been quoted or mentioned in Forbes, The New York Times, Business Insider, USA Today, MSN, Yahoo, The Verge, Vice, The Intelligencer, Quartz, Nasdaq, The Motley Fool, Fox Business, International Business Times, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Barron’s, Benzinga, and many other major publications.

A graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, Lange majored in business with a particular focus on investments. He has previous experience in the banking industry and startups.