The company reported results hours after amending its $82.7 billion merger agreement with Warner Bros, as it seeks to fend off a hostile bid from Paramount Skydance.
“Historically, Netflix has not shied away from doing what’s right for long-term growth even at the expense of near-term negative share price reaction,” said Michael Ashley Schulman, Chief Investment Officer of Running Point Capital Advisors. “That seems to be the case again.”
Netflix reported earnings on the same day it announced its all-cash deal for Warner Bros Discovery, a transaction that all but eclipsed its fourth-quarter results. The company reported revenue of $12.1 billion for October through December, modestly exceeding forecasts of $11.97 billion, according to analysts surveyed by the London Stock Exchange Group. Adjusted per-share earnings came in at 56 cents, slightly above estimates of 55 cents per share.
The company said its results were driven in part by membership gains. The streaming service crossed 325 million paid subscribers in the quarter, up from 300 million reported in late 2024.
Nielsen reported that Netflix’s monthly viewership rose 10% in December, thanks largely to the final season of hit sci-fi series “Stranger Things,” which generated 15 billion viewing minutes. The service also streamed two National Football League games on Christmas Day and released a third film in the “Knives Out” murder-mystery series.
Netflix offered a full-year revenue forecast of $50.7 billion to $51.7 billion for 2026, a projection that, at the low end, fell below analysts’ estimates of $50.98 billion. Its projections for the year incorporate a year-over-year doubling of advertising revenue, which Chief Financial Officer Spencer Neumann told investors would reach about $3 billion.
–Reuters–
