First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. Increases Position in Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX)

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. increased its stake in Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) by 14.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,330 shares of the Internet television network’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,342 shares during the quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in Netflix were worth $6,274,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Capital World Investors increased its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its holdings in Netflix by 40.6% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,452,271 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $2,654,602,000 after acquiring an additional 1,573,978 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Netflix during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,558,598,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Netflix by 1.9% during the 4th 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. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Netflix by 540.9% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,878,785 shares of the Internet television network’s stock valued at $1,888,503,000 after acquiring an additional 3,273,592 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Netflix Stock Performance

Shares of NFLX stock traded up $2.93 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $682.51. The stock had a trading volume of 1,403,545 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,678,236. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07. Netflix, Inc. has a twelve month low of $344.73 and a twelve month high of $689.88. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $635.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $588.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $294.16 billion, a PE ratio of 47.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.27.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The Internet television network reported $5.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.51 by $0.77. The firm had revenue of $9.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.28 billion. Netflix had a net margin of 18.42% and a return on equity of 29.62%. Netflix’s revenue was up 14.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.88 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Netflix, Inc. will post 18.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Netflix

In related news, Chairman Reed Hastings sold 18,361 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 28 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,443.12. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, Chairman Reed Hastings sold 18,361 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 28 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,443.12. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gregory K. Peters sold 4,783 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $675.00, for a total transaction of $3,228,525.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 13,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,835,750. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 71,385 shares of company stock worth $44,469,351 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.76% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on NFLX shares. Pivotal Research raised their target price on shares of Netflix from $765.00 to $800.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Netflix from $610.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Argus raised their target price on shares of Netflix from $660.00 to $767.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $655.00 price target on shares of Netflix in a report on Wednesday, May 15th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Netflix from $475.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and twenty-four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $637.34.

About Netflix

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.