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. It has operations in approximately 190 countries. The company was incorporated in 1997 and is headquartered in Los Gatos, California.

Netflix looks like a company with very strong operating profitability, but with a notably expensive valuation across several multiples. A P/E of 19.36 is only slightly above the industry median, so in terms of earnings the market is not pricing in an excessive premium. However, P/S of 5.76, P/B of 9.26, and P/FCF of 24.88 are significantly above industry benchmarks, which suggests that investors have high expectations for further growth. At the same time, the trend in these multiples has generally improved over recent periods: P/S, P/B, and P/FCF have declined noticeably from higher levels, which partially reduces the risk of an overheated valuation. Profitability looks outstanding: ROE of 50.41%, ROA of 25.27%, and ROI of 35.06% are significantly above the median, and their year-over-year trend is steadily positive. Net profit margin of 29.69% and operating margin of 31.30% are also strong and continue to improve, supporting earnings quality. The weak point is liquidity: the quick ratio is 0.00, while the current ratio of 1.07 is only slightly above one and below the industry median, so short-term resilience is limited. The debt burden looks manageable: debt/equity of 0.43 is below the industry median, and debt has generally declined relative to previous levels, reducing financial risk. Revenue, gross profit, EBITDA, and net income are all growing year over year, confirming not only high profitability but also business scaling. At the same time, the gross margin of 49.12% is slightly below the industry median, meaning part of the valuation premium is already reflected in the strong operating model. The absence of dividends makes the story entirely dependent on growth and revaluation rather than current cash income. Overall, the fundamentals support a moderately positive view, but the high valuation on sales, book value, and free cash flow limits the potential for a significant upward rerating. For an investor, this means a high-quality, profitable, and growing business, but with an entry price that is no longer cheap and a need for continued confirmation of growth rates.

Netflix, Inc.

Средний индекс, значительно упал. Оптимистичный взгляд на свои позиции резко сменился на неуверенность.

Medium index, significantly down. An optimistic view of his position suddenly changed to uncertainty.

Слабый индекс, значительно упал. Медведи продолжают терять уверенность.

Weak index, significantly down. Bears continue to lose confidence.

Сильный индекс, без изменений. Рынок не поддерживает быков.

Strong index, flat. The market does not support the bulls.

Сильный индекс, без изменений. Рынок на стороне медведей.

Strong index, flat. The market is on the bears' side.

Сильный индекс, без изменений. Отток средств из лонгов на высоком уровне.

Strong index, flat. Outflow of funds from longs at a high level.

Сильный индекс, без изменений. Приток средств в шорты на высоком уровне.

Strong index, flat. Inflow of funds into shorts at a high level.

Netflix shows strong profitability and growth, but trades at a premium on revenue, balance sheet, and FCF; liquidity is weak, so revaluation potential is limited.

The cost-cutting effort is likely a restructuring rather than a reduction.
Missed AI’s "Act 1"? Act 2 Could Be 15x Bigger. Most investors think they missed the AI boat because they didn't buy Nvidia in 2005. But according to our analysts, we’re only at the end of "Act 1"—the R&D phase. "Act 2" is the global rollout. Continue »
*Stock prices used were the afternoon prices of Oct. 16, 2026. The video was published on Oct. 18, 2026.
Should you buy stock in Netflix right now?
Before you buy stock in Netflix, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Netflix wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $380,363!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,315,732!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 919% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 211% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
*Stock Advisor returns as of October 19, 2026.
Parkev Tatevosian, CFA has positions in Netflix. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Netflix. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Parkev Tatevosian is an affiliate of The Motley Fool and may be compensated for promoting its services. If you choose to subscribe through his link, he will earn some extra money that supports his channel. His opinions remain his own and are unaffected by The Motley Fool.
Founded in 1993 in Alexandria, VA., by brothers David and Tom Gardner, The Motley Fool is a multimedia financial-services company dedicated to building the world's greatest investment community. Reaching millions of people each month through its website, books, newspaper column, radio show, television appearances, and subscription newsletter services, The Motley Fool champions shareholder values and advocates tirelessly for the individual investor. The company's name was taken from Shakespeare, whose wise fools both instructed and amused, and could speak the truth to the king -- without getting their heads lopped off.

Interesting News for Netflix Stock Investors

Key Points
Long-term stock winners share traits you can measure with simple tests.
No company aces every test, so the goal is finding businesses with at least one win.
Copart and Netflix pass their tests even though both stocks fell more than 35% over the past year.
Back on Dec. 27, 2010, I bought some Google stock at a split-adjusted $15.03 a share. The company has since renamed itself Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG) (NASDAQ: GOOGL), split its stock twice, and doubled down on artificial intelligence. On Oct. 16, 2026, the shares closed at $340.59.
That's a 2,166.1% gain in nearly 16 years. A $1,000 stake from that day would be worth about $22,661 now. I'd love to tell you I saw it all coming, but I did not predict the AI boom or YouTube's growth. What I saw was a business with traits that tend to show up in long-term winners. Those traits can be measured. Below are six of them, each paired with a company that clearly illustrates it and a specific test you can apply to any stock.
Missed AI’s "Act 1"? Act 2 Could Be 15x Bigger. Most investors think they missed the AI boat because they didn't buy Nvidia in 2005. But according to our analysts, we’re only at the end of "Act 1"—the R&D phase. "Act 2" is the global rollout. Continue »
Fair warning: a couple of these stocks have had a rotten year as of this writing. That's part of the lesson: don't sell a great stock in the inevitable dips.
1. Patience and compounding: Coca-Cola
My test: 25 or more straight years of dividend raises, paid for with actual free cash flow.
Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) is the stock market's slow cooker. Nothing much seems to happen for hours, and then dinner is ready. The company bumped its quarterly dividend from $0.51 to $0.53 this year, its 64th annual raise in a row. That streak is older than the moon landing.
The payout is backed by trailing free cash flow of about $14.3 billion, which lines up almost exactly with $14.4 billion in net income. The stock yields 2.4% and is up 32.9% this year, which is a wild ride by Coke's stable standards. Its 10-year price gain of 121% looks sleepy compared to the others, but that figure excludes dividends.
Reinvest those for a few decades and the slow cooker starts to look pretty clever. Coca-Cola's stock has quadrupled in price over the last 25 years, but the total return (with reinvested dividends) is about 8.3x:
2. High returns on invested capital: Alphabet
My test: Return on invested capital (ROIC) above 15%, year after year.
ROIC answers a simple question: if you hand this company a dollar, how much profit does it squeeze out of it each year? Alphabet's answer is about 32 cents, tops among these six. Its operating margin is 34% on roughly $446.6 billion of trailing revenue. Very few companies earn that kind of margin at that size.
3. Cash generation: Monster Beverage
My test: Free cash flow of at least 90% of net income, plus little or no debt.
Profits are an accountant's opinion; cash is a proven fact. Monster Beverage (NASDAQ: MNST) turned roughly $2.1 billion of net income into about $2.1 billion of free cash flow over the past year. That's a 99% conversion rate. It has zero debt, and its current assets cover current liabilities 3.7 times over.
Strong companies can fail this test during heavy back-end investment cycles. For example, Alphabet's free cash flow over the past year was about 22% of net income. Much of that gap comes from investment gains, including a big markup on its stake in Space Exploration Technologies when SpaceX went public.
Nice for the income statement, but you can't pay a dividend with an unrealized paper profit. Strip out the SpaceX equity gains, and Alphabet converts less than half of its remaining earnings into free cash, thanks to all that data center spending. It's still a great business, but Alphabet gets a failing grade on this particular test, at least for now.
4. A durable membership moat: Costco
My test: Membership renewal rates around 90% or higher.
Here's a somewhat strange business model. Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ: COST) barely makes money on the stuff it sells, with a 12.8% gross margin and a 3.9% operating margin. Its real product is the membership card, and customers pay for it before they buy a single rotisserie chicken.
And they keep paying. Costco ended fiscal 2026 with a 92.3% renewal rate in the U.S. and Canada and an 89.8% renewal rate worldwide. Paid memberships climbed to 84.1 million from 81.0 million a year earlier. Costco sells loyalty in bulk, too.
Ironically, Costco's stock isn't cheap. At 47.3 times trailing earnings, this is the priciest stock in my group of examples. That's the price of a world-class moat.
5. Owner-minded management: Copart
My test: Insiders own 5% or more, and the balance sheet carries little or no debt.
Copart (NASDAQ: CPRT) sells wrecked and used cars through online auctions. That's not glamorous. But insiders own 9% of the company, and debt is a rounding error at 1% of equity. Copart also holds about $4.5 billion in cash, or 17.4% of its $25.9 billion market cap. People who own a big slice of a company tend to run it as if they'll still own it in 20 years.
Now the uncomfortable part. Copart shares are down 37% over the past year and 24.6% over five years. Owner-minded managers can't always stop a stock from falling when the car market is shrinking. They just make it more likely the company exits a slump with its balance sheet intact.
Over the past 10 years, Copart's stock has risen 310%. I'll be watching to see whether management puts that cash to work while the shares are cheaper.
6. Reinvestment runway: Netflix
My test: This is a multi-part checkup. ROIC above 20%, revenue growth above 10% a year, and profits going back into the business instead of out the door as dividends.
A company with a long runway can reinvest its profits at high rates of return for many years. Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) pays no dividend. Most of its spare cash goes back into shows, movies, and new ways to keep you on the couch. It earns 31.1% on invested capital, and revenue has grown 12.6% a year over five years.
Netflix's stock didn't get the memo. Shares are down 41.5% over the past year and trade at 18.5 times forward earnings. The PEG ratio of 0.86 is the lowest in this group. Either the market sees trouble the numbers haven't shown yet, or the runway is on sale. Both possibilities deserve study.
Spoiler alert: I'm still a Netflix bull in 2026.
Putting the tests together
None of these companies ace every test:
Alphabet is failing on cash conversion right now.
Coca-Cola's price chart is a snooze without dividends.
Monster has never paid a penny of dividends.
Copart and Netflix pass their own tests but have lost value over the past year.
Costco generates a lot of cash but also has $7.3 billion in long-term debt.
That's fine. The purpose of these tests is to identify businesses with sufficient strengths to weather rough stretches. My Google shares had plenty of those, and I'm glad I never sold during any of them.
Should you buy stock in Netflix right now?
Before you buy stock in Netflix, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Netflix wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $380,363!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,315,732!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 919% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 211% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
*Stock Advisor returns as of October 19, 2026.
Anders Bylund has positions in Alphabet and Netflix. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Copart, Costco Wholesale, Monster Beverage, and Netflix. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

6 Signs of a Winning Stock, Each Shown by a Real Company

Looking today at week-over-week shares outstanding changes among the universe of ETFs covered at ETF Channel, one standout is the ProShares UltraPro QQQ (Symbol: TQQQ) where we have detected an approximate $776.1 million dollar inflow -- that's a 2.3% increase week over week in outstanding units (from 486,950,000 to 498,300,000). Among the largest underlying components of TQQQ, in trading today Netflix Inc (Symbol: NFLX) is off about 1.4%, Gilead Sciences Inc (Symbol: GILD) is up about 0.1%, and Seagate Technology Holdings PLC (Symbol: STX) is higher by about 3.8%. For a complete list of holdings, visit the TQQQ Holdings page » The chart below shows the one year price performance of TQQQ, versus its 200 day moving average:
Looking at the chart above, TQQQ's low point in its 52 week range is $37.32 per share, with $88.09 as the 52 week high point — that compares with a last trade of $71.39. Comparing the most recent share price to the 200 day moving average can also be a useful technical analysis technique -- learn more about the 200 day moving average ».
Exchange traded funds (ETFs) trade just like stocks, but instead of ''shares'' investors are actually buying and selling ''units''. These ''units'' can be traded back and forth just like stocks, but can also be created or destroyed to accommodate investor demand. Each week we monitor the week-over-week change in shares outstanding data, to keep a lookout for those ETFs experiencing notable inflows (many new units created) or outflows (many old units destroyed). Creation of new units will mean the underlying holdings of the ETF need to be purchased, while destruction of units involves selling underlying holdings, so large flows can also impact the individual components held within ETFs.
Further TQQQ Research:

Notable ETF Inflow Detected - TQQQ, NFLX, GILD, STX

(RTTNews) - Netflix (NFLX) is laying off roughly 6 percent of its workforce, or about 1,000 employees, as the streaming company looks to prioritise resources and control costs. The cuts will primarily affect its product, technology, legal and human resources teams.
Co-CEOs Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters told employees that Netflix's business remains strong and is on track to meet its full-year forecast, while the company continues investing in areas expected to drive growth and innovation.
The layoffs come weeks after Sarandos acknowledged that Netflix was not growing as quickly as he would like. While the company remains profitable and a dominant streaming player, viewing time has stagnated, with recent subscriber growth supported by its password-sharing crackdown and cheaper ad-supported plan.
Netflix has also expanded into live sports, documentaries and video games as it competes with YouTube and other streaming platforms. The company is scheduled to report quarterly earnings on October 20.

Netflix To Cut About 1,000 Jobs As Streaming Giant Sharpens Focus On Growth

Among the underlying components of the S&P 500 index, we saw noteworthy options trading volume today in Intel Corp (Symbol: INTC), where a total of 627,726 contracts have traded so far, representing approximately 62.8 million underlying shares. That amounts to about 58% of INTC's average daily trading volume over the past month of 108.3 million shares. Particularly high volume was seen for the $115 strike call option expiring October 30, 2026, with 29,226 contracts trading so far today, representing approximately 2.9 million underlying shares of INTC. Below is a chart showing INTC's trailing twelve month trading history, with the $115 strike highlighted in orange:
Palo Alto Networks, Inc (Symbol: PANW) options are showing a volume of 27,218 contracts thus far today. That number of contracts represents approximately 2.7 million underlying shares, working out to a sizeable 48.7% of PANW's average daily trading volume over the past month, of 5.6 million shares. Especially high volume was seen for the $410 strike call option expiring October 16, 2026, with 771 contracts trading so far today, representing approximately 77,100 underlying shares of PANW. Below is a chart showing PANW's trailing twelve month trading history, with the $410 strike highlighted in orange:
And Netflix Inc (Symbol: NFLX) options are showing a volume of 167,759 contracts thus far today. That number of contracts represents approximately 16.8 million underlying shares, working out to a sizeable 44.9% of NFLX's average daily trading volume over the past month, of 37.4 million shares. Especially high volume was seen for the $71 strike call option expiring October 16, 2026, with 11,479 contracts trading so far today, representing approximately 1.1 million underlying shares of NFLX. Below is a chart showing NFLX's trailing twelve month trading history, with the $71 strike highlighted in orange:
For the various different available expirations for INTC options, PANW options, or NFLX options, visit StockOptionsChannel.com.
Further INTC Research:

Noteworthy Wednesday Option Activity: INTC, PANW, NFLX

Key Points
Netflix's growth rate lags behind that of its big tech peers.
The streaming giant and S&P 500 trade at the same valuation.
In the age of AI, some big tech stocks have been all but forgotten. Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) is one of those stocks, as it doesn't have the AI angle that many others do. That shouldn't distract investors from how well Netflix has done over the years. However, 2026 has been an atrocious year for Netflix, as it has lost about 25% of its value since the year started.
Netflix is known to make some dramatic movements after earnings, and its next results come out on Oct. 20. So, is Netflix a buy before then? Or should investors steer clear?
Missed AI’s "Act 1"? Act 2 Could Be 15x Bigger. Most investors think they missed the AI boat because they didn't buy Nvidia in 2005. But according to our analysts, we’re only at the end of "Act 1"—the R&D phase. "Act 2" is the global rollout. Continue »
Netflix doesn't have explosive growth compared to AI companies
Part of the reason for Netflix's lackluster stock performance has to do with how it stacks up versus alternative investments. If you're looking for a big tech stock right now, Netflix is being compared to several companies that are growing revenue above a 20% year-over-year pace, and in some cases it's far faster.
The problem is that Netflix just doesn't compare, as its second-quarter revenue growth was 13.4%. It's not going to get any better in the third quarter, as its revenue growth is projected to be about 11.7%. This is a notable deceleration, as Netflix's revenue growth trend has been declining recently.
Wall Street analysts aren't any more bullish on the future. They estimate that Netflix's 2026 total revenue growth will be 13.3%, and that 2027's will be 11.2%. That's an OK growth rate for the maturity of Netflix's business, but why would you invest in Netflix when you can buy a company that is growing at a much faster rate?
There are two good reasons.
Netflix doesn't have cash flow issues
The problem with some of the AI investments is that they're spending hundreds of billions of dollars on AI infrastructure, and there's no guarantee that there will be a tangible return on investments for those assets. This could be a huge issue, or it could be nothing, depending on what the final state of AI profitability and spending looks like. Netflix isn't doing that, and it's producing strong free cash flow.
Another reason why Netflix may be a solid investment is that it doesn't have a premium valuation. In fact, it trades for the same price tag as the S&P 500, as it trades for 19.6 times forward earnings.
I think this valuation is about perfect for Netflix, as it's growing at a slightly-faster-than-market pace and is in a pretty strong position to continue growing its revenue at a double-digit pace for the foreseeable future. With not much change on the horizon, I don't foresee any large movements following its Oct. 20 earnings report, unless a major unexpected story breaks.
So, is Netflix worth buying at these prices? I'm not sure. Many AI investments trade for only a slightly higher price tag than Netflix does right now, and are growing at a far faster pace. That could lead to far better returns over the next five years than Netflix projects to deliver.
If your goal is to beat the market, then I'm not sure investing in Netflix is the best move. It's becoming a market-average stock with not a whole lot left to differentiate itself. Unless you're looking for a stock that's not influenced by AI, I think investors can do far better than buying Netflix stock in terms of multi-year investment returns.
Should you buy stock in Netflix right now?
Before you buy stock in Netflix, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Netflix wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $379,986!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,404,152!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 948% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 215% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
*Stock Advisor returns as of October 14, 2026.
Keithen Drury has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Netflix. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Founded in 1993 in Alexandria, VA., by brothers David and Tom Gardner, The Motley Fool is a multimedia financial-services company dedicated to building the world's greatest investment community. Reaching millions of people each month through its website, books, newspaper column, radio show, television appearances, and subscription newsletter services, The Motley Fool champions shareholder values and advocates tirelessly for the individual investor. The company's name was taken from Shakespeare, whose wise fools both instructed and amused, and could speak the truth to the king -- without getting their heads lopped off.

Should You Buy Netflix Stock Before Oct. 20?

Key Points
Streaming stocks have struggled this year, amid a rush to consolidate.
The combination of Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery could shake up the industry.
Big tech streaming platforms also pose a threat to the streaming and entertainment companies.
The streaming sector remains as volatile as ever, and the push to consolidation has continued this year.
The merger between Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount closed earlier this month, forming Skydance (NYSE: SKYD). This new Hollywood powerhouse will have to overcome roughly $80 billion in debt to deliver results for investors.
Missed Nvidia in 2009? This Rare Signal Is Flashing Again. In 2009, a "Double Down" signal flashed for a little-known chipmaker called Nvidia. For the first time in years, that same "Total Conviction" signal is flashing for a company 1/100th the size of Nvidia. Continue »
Roku (NASDAQ: ROKU) agreed to be acquired by Fox Corporation in a move by Fox to expand its distribution and reach, as Alphabet's YouTube gains market share over traditional streamers.
Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) remains the industry leader, but a lot could change in the next few years. Let's take a look at where Netflix and its streaming peers could be by 2030.
1. Netflix
Netflix invented streaming and continues to lead the industry, though doubts about its future have grown this year.
The stock has tumbled as it's reported weak engagement and as it's lost market share to YouTube. Netflix no longer reports subscriber numbers, so we have less insight into the business than we once did.
The question for Netflix is whether it can maintain its current level of growth in the low-teens revenue range. If it can do that, the stock could be 50% higher or better by 2030. However, if the growth in the business continues to slow, Netflix stock is likely to underperform. While a decline in revenue seems unlikely, Netflix's original content has been underwhelming, and it will have to turn that around for its growth rate to stabilize.
2. Disney
Disney (NYSE: DIS) has been slow to find success with its streaming business after launching Disney+, but its streaming platform, which also includes Hulu and ESPN, is finally profitable and is delivering strong bottom-line growth.
Under new CEO Josh D'Amaro, the company is in the process of restructuring under his "One Disney" plan, which will enable viewers to easily use all three of its services in one app. Additionally, the company is embracing that strategy to do more to bundle its parks and experiences with streaming, using streaming to market the parks, and to better target its experiences to individual viewers' tastes.
The plan makes sense, but Disney has been slow to execute these strategies in the past, so investors may want to wait and see how the rollout goes. Disney stock has gone nowhere in the last decade, but it could finally make gains as streaming profits grow. After so much underperformance in recent years and with the entertainment business largely mature, I'm skeptical that the company can outperform the market between now and 2030.
3. Skydance
The newest kid on the block in streaming has the most to prove. Skydance combined two struggling legacy streaming platforms, Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount, into one, and absorbed roughly $80 billion in debt to do it.
It also settled a lawsuit with several state attorneys general. It made a number of compromises, including releasing at least 30 theatrical films per year over the next five years. That commitment, among others, could hamper its ability to turn profitable.
Given its debt and the restrictions from the settlement, Skydance faces an uphill battle through 2030. The stock will struggle to outperform the market.
4. Comcast
Finally, Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA) is the last major streaming stock on the list, following the wave of consolidation. However, the Peacock parent has less exposure to streaming than other companies on this list, as its primary business is broadband internet.
With its cable business declining and broadband mature, the company has struggled to grow. While Peacock offers a good mix of entertainment and has reached 48 million users in the U.S., it doesn't operate internationally and is unlikely to have a significant impact on Comcast's bottom line.
For dividend and value investors, Comcast may be attractive, but the business and the stock have been in decline for years, and that trend will be difficult to reverse.
What it means for investors
Legacy operators still face headwinds from the decline of the cable and box office businesses, giving Netflix an advantage over its peers.
Still, all of these companies are competing against big tech companies like Amazon, Alphabet, and Apple that see streaming as a way to pad their user ecosystems and make them stickier, and they have the means to operate at a loss if needed.
Therefore, all four of these stocks face challenges in addition to streaming reaching maturity in established markets like North America. Netflix still looks like the best bet, given its established global presence and scale, but its days of delivering market-crushing growth for investors may be over.
Should you buy stock in Netflix right now?
Before you buy stock in Netflix, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Netflix wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $380,795!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,390,634!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 946% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 215% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
*Stock Advisor returns as of October 13, 2026.
Jeremy Bowman has positions in Netflix and Roku. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Netflix, Roku, and Walt Disney. The Motley Fool recommends Comcast. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Here's Where Netflix and 3 Other Streaming and Media Stocks Could Be by 2030

Key Points
Netflix had around 16,000 full-time employees at the end of 2025, so a 5% cut would be about 800 jobs.
Netflix's marketing, technology, and administrative costs climbed 18% in the second quarter of 2026, while revenue grew 13%.
The first of Netflix's two big 2022 layoff rounds came four trading days after the stock's lowest close in that slide.
Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) plans a restructuring that would cut around 5% of its staff and may be announced as early as next week, Puck reported on Friday. Netflix declined to comment, so for now the cuts are only reported.
But the scale stands out. The streaming giant had around 16,000 full-time employees at the end of 2025, which puts a 5% cut at about 800 jobs. That'd be over the 450 or so jobs Netflix shed across two rounds in 2022, its latest big layoffs.
Missed AI’s "Act 1"? Act 2 Could Be 15x Bigger. Most investors think they missed the AI boat because they didn't buy Nvidia in 2005. But according to our analysts, we’re only at the end of "Act 1"—the R&D phase. "Act 2" is the global rollout. Continue »
And the first of those 2022 rounds came just four trading days after the stock's lowest close in that slump.
Shares trade around $71 as of this writing -- about four times the 2022 low, but still 47% under the record close of $133.91 the stock set in June 2025. Does a fresh round of cuts mean what it meant then?
Image source: Netflix.
Spending is growing faster than sales
Netflix's spending outside content helps explain why management may want a smaller staff.
Showing how fast these costs are climbing, Netflix's sales and marketing, technology and development, and general and administrative expenses rose a combined 18% year over year in the second quarter of 2026, to around $2.3 billion. In the same three months, revenue grew 13% to $12.6 billion. Technology and development, the line that includes most of the pay for Netflix's tech workers, jumped 22% by itself. Netflix said the increase came mostly from a $142 million rise in personnel-related costs.
Headcount also kept rising. Netflix finished 2025 with around 2,000 more full-time employees than it did a year before.
The spending gap is opening while revenue growth slows. Netflix's revenue climbed 18% year over year in the fourth quarter of 2025. Growth then cooled to 16% in 2026's first quarter and to 13% from April through June. Management's forecast is for around 12% in the third quarter.
Meanwhile, Netflix is still targeting a 31.5% operating margin for 2026, up from 29.5% in 2025. Shedding around 5% of its staff won't do much to its content costs, the company's largest expense. But it might help bring these other costs back toward the rate of revenue growth, and I think that's where the cuts are most likely aimed.
The 2022 cuts
Netflix has done this before, for almost the same reason.
In April 2022, the streamer reported a drop of 200,000 paid memberships in the first quarter, its first such decline in over a decade. It also forecast a loss of 2 million more in the second quarter, and its first-quarter revenue growth had cooled to 10%. The stock fell 35% the next day.
Shares kept slipping until May 11, 2022, when they closed at around $16.64 on a split-adjusted basis. On May 17, Netflix let around 150 workers go. A second round of about 300 followed on June 23.
"While we continue to invest significantly in the business, we made these adjustments so that our costs are growing in line with our slower revenue growth," a Netflix spokesperson said about the June cuts.
Looking back, the first round came near the bottom. But the stock closed at about $16.75 on June 14, just above its May low, so the layoffs didn't turn it around by themselves.
The recovery arguably owed more to new revenue. Netflix launched a cheaper ad-supported plan in November 2022 and rolled out charges for account sharing widely in 2023.
Is this 2022 again?
I don't think so, at least not on the numbers. In 2022, Netflix was losing members and said it would manage to a minimum operating margin of around 19% to 20% as it worked to reaccelerate growth. Today, it's still growing revenue at a double-digit pace, and its operating margin in the second quarter of 2026 was 33.4%.
In other words, this round looks less like a defensive step and more like a company trying to keep profit growth ahead of slowing sales. What's more, Netflix says its 2026 forecast implies operating income growth of over 20%.
Of course, investors aren't paying a growth stock price for that.
At roughly $71, the shares trade at about 19 times earnings, using analysts' average estimate of 2027 profits. It's a modest price-to-earnings ratio for a business expecting profit growth like that, and I think the price already assumes growth keeps easing.
Still, I'm not seeing this round of cuts as a sign that the stock has bottomed. The 2022 layoffs lined up with the low, but what boosted the shares after that was growth coming back, first in members and then in revenue. Netflix's revenue growth is still slowing now, and cutting around 800 jobs can help its margin without doing much to speed up sales.
Should you buy stock in Netflix right now?
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Netflix Is Reportedly Cutting 5% of Its Staff. Its 2022 Layoffs Came Days After the Stock Bottomed.

(RTTNews) - Netflix, Inc. (NFLX) is planning to reduce around 5 percent of its workforce, with an official announcement expected as early as next week, according to a Puck News report.
The entertainment service provider had about 16,000 employees at the end of 2025, meaning roughly 800 people are expected to be affected by this latest workforce reduction, the report added.
The decision comes as the streaming competition intensifies, leading to increase in advertising budgets and threat to viewership numbers.
If confirmed, the layoffs would be largest since 2022, where Netflix let go of around 450 people from a workforce of about 11,000.
NFLX was trading at $70.96, down 0.85 percent on the Nasdaq.

Netflix Reportedly Plans To Lay Off 5% Of Its Workforce

Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) is trading near its 52-week low, and I used that opportunity to add more shares to my portfolio.
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*Stock prices used were the afternoon prices of Oct. 6, 2026. The video was published on Oct. 8, 2026.
Should you buy stock in Netflix right now?
Before you buy stock in Netflix, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Netflix wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $375,887!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,459,146!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 955% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 215% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
*Stock Advisor returns as of October 9, 2026.
Parkev Tatevosian, CFA has positions in Netflix. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Netflix. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Parkev Tatevosian is an affiliate of The Motley Fool and may be compensated for promoting its services. If you choose to subscribe through his link, he will earn some extra money that supports his channel. His opinions remain his own and are unaffected by The Motley Fool.

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