Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) Shares Up 1.9%

Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) shares rose 1.9% on Monday . The stock traded as high as $591.91 and last traded at $590.28. Approximately 1,201,897 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 73% from the average daily volume of 4,398,320 shares. The stock had previously closed at $579.34.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on NFLX shares. Benchmark reissued a “sell” rating and set a $440.00 price objective on shares of Netflix in a report on Thursday, April 18th. StockNews.com raised Netflix from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $585.00 target price (down from $720.00) on shares of Netflix in a report on Friday, April 19th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Netflix from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. Finally, Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $725.00 target price on shares of Netflix in a report on Friday, April 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and twenty-three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $631.15.

Netflix Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $602.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $531.62. The firm has a market cap of $262.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.23.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The Internet television network reported $5.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.51 by $0.77. The company had revenue of $9.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.28 billion. Netflix had a return on equity of 29.62% and a net margin of 18.42%. Netflix’s revenue was up 14.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.88 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Netflix, Inc. will post 18.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Netflix news, Chairman Reed Hastings sold 18,361 shares of Netflix stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $551.54, for a total value of $10,126,825.94. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 28 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,443.12. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Netflix news, CEO Gregory K. Peters sold 5,352 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $625.00, for a total transaction of $3,345,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 13,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,181,250. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Chairman Reed Hastings sold 18,361 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $551.54, for a total transaction of $10,126,825.94. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 28 shares in the company, valued at $15,443.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 155,298 shares of company stock worth $89,753,167. 1.76% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Netflix

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital World Investors lifted its stake in Netflix by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 11,744,636 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $5,718,265,000 after acquiring an additional 78,320 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC grew its position in Netflix by 17.0% during the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 6,381,464 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $3,875,655,000 after purchasing an additional 929,193 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Netflix in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,558,598,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Netflix by 2.1% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,633,770 shares of the Internet television network’s stock worth $1,749,712,000 after acquiring an additional 96,938 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in Netflix by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 4,121,104 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $2,006,483,000 after acquiring an additional 78,298 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

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.