Netflix: Netflix Q1 Earnings Preview: No Subscriber Figures, Experts See Shares As 'Safer Haven In This Tariff War Environment'

Streaming giant Netflix Inc NFLX could hope to win over investors with guidance and growth plans when the company reports first-quarter financial results after market close Thursday. Here's a look at analyst estimates, what analysts are saying ahead of the report and the key items to watch with no subscriber figures coming in this report. Earnings Estimates: Analysts estimate Netflix will report first-quarter financial revenue of $10.52 billion, up from $9.37 billion in last year's first quarter, according to data from Benzinga Pro. The company has beat analyst revenue estimates in six straight quarters and beaten estimates in eight of the past 10 quarters overall. Analysts expect Netflix to report first-quarter earnings per share of $5.72, up from $5.28 in last year's first quarter. The company has beaten analyst estimates in four straight quarters and eight of the past 10 quarters overall. Guidance from Netflix calls for first-quarter revenue to be $10.42 billion. The company guided for full-year revenue to be in a range of $43.5 billion to $44.5 billion. Read Also: Netflix Stock To Kick And Punch Higher? Streamer Could Add UFC Rights To Its Growing Sports Library What Analysts Are Saying: Netflix has "ample runway for continued growth" with subscriber growth and more monetization opportunities, Bank of America analyst Jessica Reif Ehrlich said in a recent investor note. The analyst reiterated a Buy rating on Netflix with a $1,175 price target. Ehrlich highlighted a recent Wall Street Journal report that said Netflix is targeting doubling its revenue by 2030 and hitting an $1 trillion market capitalization. "This validates our bullish thesis on Netflix as it underscores ample runway for continued growth driven by further subscriber additions," Ehrlich said. The analyst said Netflix's strong subscription model has performed historically well in a recession, making the stock a "defensive choice" for investors. "Netflix's advertising business, which is nascent, should be an incremental positive, not negative, even in a more challenging advertising backdrop. We expect shares to react positively to this longer-term outlook." Freedom Capital Markets Chief Global Strategist Jay Woods said Netflix has given back all the gains from its last earnings cycle and could be hoping to get back to previous levels with its first-quarter results. "Shares are seen as a safer haven in this tariff war environment but have not been immune to the wild market swings we have been seeing," Woods said in a weekly newsletter . "It has continued to put up solid numbers and fared better than most growth stocks during this time." Woods said there are more positives than negatives when looking at Netflix stock technically. Key Items to Watch : Netflix will not break out subscriber growth in its first-quarter results, a change it previously announced. This change comes after Netflix had record subscriber growth of 18.91 million paid additions in the fourth quarter. Netflix ended the fourth quarter with 301.63 million subscribers. The fourth quarter figure was helped by strong content that included a boxing match between Jake Paul and Mike Tyson, two NFL Christmas Day games and a second season of "Squid Game." While Netflix's first quarter didn't have the same key content that brought in subscribers, the company kicked off its weekly WWE Raw content in January and had many other new shows and movies hit the platform during the quarter. If Netflix doesn't break out any total subscriber figures, investors and analysts will look to dissect future guidance or what content was said to have performed the best. The Wall Street Journal report said Netflix is targeting 410 million global subscribers by 2030, suggesting plenty of upside for the next five years to its most recently reported figure. Netflix has new seasons of "Stranger Things," "Wednesday" and "Squid Game" along with more NFL games on Christmas planned for later in 2025. The company could highlight its upcoming slate of content to increase excitement among investors and analysts after the strong fourth quarter and end to 2024. Updates on live sports content plans and the company's gaming segment could also provide upside to the stock and highlight future monetization efforts. The company's commentary on macroeconomic issues and global uncertainties could also show how its streaming platform is insulated from tariffs and send shares higher. NFLX Price Action : Netflix stock traded down Wednesday by 1.36% at $962.97 on Wednesday versus a 52-week trading range of $542.01 to $1,064.50. Netflix stock is up 10.2% year-to-date in 2025 and up over 50% in the past year. Photo: FP Creative Stock on Shutterstock.com NFLX Netflix Inc $963.48 -1.31 % Stock Score Locked: Want to See it? 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