'Netflix has won the streaming wars': MoffettNathanson upgrades stock to Buy with $1,100 price target

Netflix (NFLX) banal roseate astir 4% successful midday trading connected Monday aft MoffettNathanson expert Robert Fishman upgraded shares to Buy from Neutral and boosted his full-year terms people to $1,100 from $850 prior.

"Netflix has won the streaming wars. Case closed," Fishman wrote successful a enactment to clients. "But wherever does the institution spell from here? How overmuch much runway for maturation is ahead? Despite each of Netflix’s caller occurrence successful reinvigorating growth, we judge its engagement volition let the institution to amended monetize and unlock greater profits successful the years ahead."

Netflix banal has struggled successful caller sessions arsenic a broader marketplace sell-off continues to slam high-flying tech names. Shares person fallen implicit 10% from the 52-week highs they reached conscionable 1 period ago, erstwhile the banal was trading good supra $1,000 a share.

But Fishman sees brighter days ahead, crediting the "Netflix flywheel" erstwhile it comes to the company's quality to grow margins.

In his note, the expert said Netflix tin spend to walk much connected contented owed to its immense fig of subscribers, which presently sits astatine astir 302 cardinal globally. As a reminder, the institution volition nary longer uncover subscriber information opening successful its 2025 reporting cycle.

"Because it has much content, it drives amended engagement, starring to much subscribers and perchance amended pricing powerfulness successful a virtuous cycle," Fishman said. "This is the enduring powerfulness of Netflix’s first-mover vantage successful streaming."

And with the institution opening to standard its two-year-old advertisement tier, a caller runway of maturation has been unlocked, according to the analyst.

Earlier this year, the institution hiked subscription costs crossed its assorted streaming tiers successful the US, including the advertisement plan, which inactive remains 1 of the cheapest tiers connected the market.

Management said it decided to rise prices, arsenic its contented "has ne'er been better," with much movies and TV shows expected passim 2025. Sports and unrecorded events person besides go staples wrong the Netflix ecosystem.

In November, the Jake Paul and Mike Tyson lucifer attracted implicit 108 cardinal planetary viewers, becoming the most-streamed sporting lawsuit of each time. For context, the 2024 Super Bowl, which was the most-watched American TV broadcast ever, pulled successful 124 cardinal US viewers.

Similarly, the NFL games averaged astir 30 cardinal viewers. According to Netflix, it was its most-watched Christmas Day ever successful the US. The institution volition proceed to treble down connected sports amid the caller debut of WWE Raw. Rumors person besides swirled the institution could bid connected UFC rights next.