Netflix Inc (NASDAQ: NFLX) shares are poised for an impressive near-9% surge on Wednesday, fueled by the streaming giant’s fourth-quarter subscriber and revenue growth that outpaced expectations, along with an optimistic outlook for 2024.
Netflix’s revenue of $8.83 billion exceeded Wall Street analysts’ projections of $8.72 billion, marking a substantial year-over-year growth of 13.2%. This remarkable performance was attributed to Netflix’s paid-sharing model, recent pricing adjustments, and its robust content lineup.
However, the earnings per share (EPS) came in at $2.11, slightly falling short of the anticipated $2.20. This EPS figure also included a $239 million non-cash unrealized loss due to currency fluctuations on the company’s euro-denominated debt.
During the quarter, Netflix added a remarkable 13.1 million new subscribers, pushing its paid membership count to $260.3 million, representing a 12.8% year-over-year increase, surpassing the company’s initial forecast of approximately 9 million additions.
Looking ahead to the current quarter, 1Q, Netflix is forecasting an EPS of $4.49 with revenue expected to reach $9.24 billion. While this projection beats EPS estimates of $4, it falls slightly below the consensus revenue forecast of $9.28 billion.
In a letter to shareholders accompanying the results, Netflix expressed confidence in achieving healthy double-digit revenue growth for the full year 2024 on a currency-neutral basis. They anticipate this growth to be driven by ongoing membership expansion and improvements in currency-neutral average revenue per member (ARM) through price adjustments. The company also indicated its commitment to building and expanding its advertising business, expecting strong growth in 2024, although it remains a smaller contributor to overall revenue at present.
Following the release of its earnings report, Netflix shares surged by 7.2%, reaching $527.40.
Senior market analyst at Capital.com, Kyle Rodda, remarked that the subscriber growth “exceeded expectations,” highlighting it as the strongest performance since the initial pandemic-induced stay-at-home surge. This success underscores Netflix’s effective execution of its new pricing and product segmentation strategy.
