Netflix Ad Business $300M Short of Plan; Banks Slash Targets as Shares Hit 52-Week Low
NFLX is trading near its 52-week low of $64.1 (1.5% above the low) on elevated volume (2.9× avg).
Summary
Netflix's advertising business is running about $300 million below expectations, and management cited the shortfall as a contributor to a weaker near-term outlook, trimming 2026 ad revenue to up to $3.0B. That lands on top of Q3 results reported October 20 — $12.87B revenue, $0.87 EPS, 34.6% operating margin — and a 2026 revenue guide already narrowed to $51.1B. Banks responded by cutting targets: BofA to $90, Goldman to $84, Morgan Stanley to $77, Bernstein to $80, Guggenheim to $78, Rosenblatt to $71, Barclays to $65; Needham downgraded to Hold, flagging content issues and FX-neutral growth slowing to single digits by FY2027. Shares fell about 6% premarket to roughly $64.14–$64.28, a new 52-week low and down about 27% year-to-date before the drop. The ad miss matters because it undercuts the second growth engine investors were paying for while content and sports rights costs keep climbing; Oppenheimer and Wedbush still carry Outperform with $80 targets.
At the time of this announcement, NFLX was trading at $65.06 on NASDAQ in the Technology sector, with a market capitalization of approximately $270.8B. The 52-week trading range was $64.10 to $124.86. This news item was assessed with negative market sentiment and an importance score of 7 out of 10. Source: Wiseek News.