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Tag: Multimedia Content Services

  • Netflix stock falls after subscriber growth, earnings forecast miss. But it’s bouncing back on ad plans, shared-password crackdown in U.S.

    Netflix stock falls after subscriber growth, earnings forecast miss. But it’s bouncing back on ad plans, shared-password crackdown in U.S.

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    Netflix Inc.’s stock initially plunged in after-hours trading Tuesday, after the streaming giant posted weaker subscriber growth and forecast a smaller profit than Wall Street expected. But shares later recovered and crossed into positive territory on company disclosures that its new ad-supported service is a success and its crackdown on shared accounts in the U.S. is coming this quarter.

    Netflix
    NFLX,
    +0.29%
    reported that subscribers increased by 1.75 million in the first quarter of the year, missing analysts’ average estimate of 2.2 million. Netflix reported fiscal first-quarter net earnings of $1.31 billion, or $2.88 a share, compared with $3.53 a share in the year-ago quarter.

    Revenue improved to $8.16 billion from $7.87 billion a year ago. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had expected on average net earnings of $2.86 a share on revenue of $8.18 billion.

    For the second quarter, Netflix executives guided for earnings of $2.84 a share on $8.24 billion in revenue, while analysts on average were expecting earnings of $3.07 a share on sales of $8.18 billion. Netflix no longer provides guidance on subscriber additions, a sign its years of rapid growth are clearly cooling.

    Shares plunged lower than $300 in after-hours trading immediately following the release of the results, after closing with a 0.3% increase at $333.70. But shares had crossed into positive territory and were recently above $335 in the extended session.

    Netflix executives have hoped to goose their financial results with cheaper, ad-supported options and a crackdown on password sharing. In a letter to shareholders Tuesday, company executives said the ads plan in the U.S. “already has a total ARM (subscription + ads) greater than our standard plan.”

    At the same time, they disclosed a password crackdown in the U.S. will occur in the second quarter, a bit later from previous expectations.

    “We shifted out the timing of the broad launch from late Q1 to Q2,” Netflix executives wrote. “While this means that some of the expected membership growth and revenue benefit will fall in Q3 rather than Q2, we believe this will result in a
    better outcome for both our members and our business.”

    Additionally, Netflix also announced that it will end the DVD-by-mail business that launched the company into consumers’ homes. Revenue from the DVD business had declined from $911 million in 2013 to $146 million in 2022.

    “This a catch-22 environment for streaming companies as they are pivoting from chasing subscribers to chasing profits while at the same time inflation-weary consumers are reassessing their discretionary spending habits,” KPMG U.S. National Media Leader Scott Purdy said, in assessing the results. “Today’s figures, a bellwether for the industry at large, signal that winter is coming for the consumer. All of the subsidies are ending. Consumers can expect to be hit with ads, higher prices, and password sharing crackdown.”

    Expectations among investors heading into Netflix’s quarterly report were muted. The focus was on Netflix’s switch toward better monetization with an ad-supported service and a rolling crackdown on shared accounts. Analysts in particular were closely watching the performance of Netflix’s new “Basic with Ads” plan ($6.99 a month) and its effectiveness in stanching the defection of subscribers to competing services from Walt Disney Co.
    DIS,
    +0.63%
    and Apple Inc.
    AAPL,
    +0.75%    .

    Netflix’s rollout of the ad-supported tier could also have a temporary impact on margins: Netflix reported an operating margin of 21%, compared with about 25% in the year-ago quarter.

    At the same time, Netflix put an end to paid shared accounts in some Latin American countries last year, and expanded plans to do so Canada, New Zealand, Portugal and Spain in February.

    “In our view, the password-sharing crackdown will result in a greater number of subs as well as revenue because the primary account holder will either pay an additional fee for members who have moved out of the household or those sharing accounts become full subscribers,” Bank of America analysts said in a recent note.

    Shares of Netflix have climbed 12% so far this year, while the broader S&P 500 index
    SPX,
    +0.09%
    has advanced 8%.

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  • Netflix is sending its DVD-by-mail business to the Blockbuster graveyard

    Netflix is sending its DVD-by-mail business to the Blockbuster graveyard

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    Netflix Inc. is ending the DVD-by-mail business that first made it a household name and took down Blockbuster Video.

    Netflix
    NFLX,
    +0.29%
    executives announced Tuesday afternoon that the company will ship its last red DVD envelopes on Sept. 29, after 25 years. The business has dwindled in the past decade from more than $900 million in revenue in 2013 to less than $150 million last year.

    “Our goal has always been to provide the best service for our members, but as the business continues to shrink that’s going to become increasingly difficult,” co-Chief Executive Ted Sarandos said in a blog post titled “Netflix DVD — The Final Season.”

    Also see: Netflix stock falls after subscriber growth, earnings forecast miss. But it’s bouncing back on ad plans, shared-password crackdown in U.S.

    Netflix launched as a DVD-by-mail service in an era that relied on physical media such as the discs to watch television shows and movies at home. The DVD business at the time was dominated by Blockbuster, which relied on brick-and-mortar stores that rented movies for a few days and charged late fees if they were not returned on time.

    Netflix offered a different approach, allowing consumers to have a certain number of DVDs mailed to their home and return them at their leisure, which eventually led to the demise of Blockbuster. Eventually, the company began focusing on streaming media directly to consumers, and first offered that service for free to DVD subscribers.

    Co-founder and former Chief Executive Reed Hastings — who announced he was stepping down from that position three months ago — decided to pivot from the successful DVD business to focus on streaming, which wasn’t an easy transition. When he announced that Netflix would sever the DVD and streaming businesses in 2011, effectively doubling the monthly price for consumers who wanted both offerings, it became one of the biggest debacles in Netflix history as consumers raged and canceled their subscriptions.

    While the process was not easy — remember Qwikster? — Hastings’ vision for streaming services won out, with Netflix collecting roughly $31.5 billion in streaming subscription revenue last year, as the DVD business racked up $146 million. Some of the biggest names in entertainment and tech — Walt Disney Inc.
    DIS,
    +0.63%    ,
    Apple Inc.
    AAPL,
    +0.75%    ,
    Warner Bros. Discovery’s
    WBD,
    -1.79%
    HBO, and many more — have followed Netflix’s path, and established streaming as one of the most dominant forms of media consumption.

    For more: Netflix has changed drastically since its IPO —and is worth thousands of times more

    “Those iconic red envelopes changed the way people watched shows and movies at home — and they paved the way for the shift to streaming,” Sarandos wrote in Tuesday’s announcement.

    Netflix stock has also been a winner, despite a decline in late trading following earnings on Tuesday afternoon. Shares have increased more than 1,300% in the past decade, as the S&P 500 index
    SPX,
    +0.09%
    has grown by about 167%.

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  • Tesla, Netflix earnings due: Cheaper cars, cheaper content, more workout videos, as ‘earnings recession’ seems likely

    Tesla, Netflix earnings due: Cheaper cars, cheaper content, more workout videos, as ‘earnings recession’ seems likely

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    For anyone watching Netflix, the streaming services’ recent moves to cut costs could mean fewer films, lower-budget shows and — depending on your subscription — more ads. For anyone buying a Tesla, its moves to cut prices will make it easier on customers, but harder on profit-seeking investors.

    With both companies reporting results this week, Wall Street will get a look at who still wants a Tesla, amid growing competition, and what kind of growth and viewership anyone can expect from Netflix, as it recalibrates its streaming ambitions and focuses more on profitability following years of rapid growth.

    Netflix Inc.
    NFLX,
    -2.18%    ,
    which reports first-quarter results on Tuesday, is trying to crack down on shared accounts, and analysts polled by FactSet see subscriptions coming in well below the average. However, BofA analyst Jessica Reif Ehrlich said that first-quarter results would likely “mark the low point” of the year, “reflecting the initial impact of password sharing efforts in select markets.”

    Netflix will report as shareholders’ growing influence over the streaming universe raises questions over what shows and films get streamed, and for how long, as Wall Street tries to wring more bottom-line gains from an industry that boomed before and during the pandemic but burned cash and got crowded in the process. Netflix, along with Walt Disney Co.
    DIS,
    -0.93%    ,
    have laid off employees, while Warner Brothers Discovery Inc.
    WBD,
    -1.85%
    fuses its streaming holdings together.

    “We expect Netflix to continue reining in spending, particularly by seeking alternatives to its past practices,” Wedbush analysts Alicia Reese and Michael Pachter wrote in a research note on Thursday. “The company appears to us to be producing fewer feature length films, which we have always viewed as a poor investment, and appears focused on lower cost television content.”

    “We are equally encouraged that Netflix is looking at low-cost content like workout videos, which we believe will present a lot of value to subscribers at very low cost,” they added later.

    The analysts said that they felt Netflix was well positioned, as other streamers rethink their approach to expansion and financials. And they said Netflix “should be valued as an immensely profitable, slow-growth company.” They also said that Netflix’s decision to launch a cheaper ad-supported option was a “great decision” after growth stalled in the U.S. and Canada and the company’s business in Europe, the Middle East and Africa reaches the saturation point.

    For Tesla Inc.
    TSLA,
    -0.48%    ,
    which reports results on Wednesday, the focus for investors will be on price-cutting and its impact on margins. Still, Potter, an analyst at Piper Sandler, has said Tesla is on a “warpath” and “maintaining its aggressive approach to pricing,” and said investors “should expect relentless price cuts to continue.”

    Base prices for Tesla’s Model S and Model X have fallen by around $5,000, MarketWatch has noted, as the electric-vehicle maker tries to stimulate demand. The company is also selling a more affordable Model Y SUV.

    “Tesla concerns on pricing and a race to the bottom persisted as general sentiment on the stock is souring given recent price cuts after a brief period of stabilization,” TD Cowen analyst Jeffrey Osborne said in a note.

    Tesla will report as the Biden administration tries to take a harder stance on auto pollution. The EPA recently proposed new emissions restrictions intended to hasten electric-vehicle usage, by incrementally curtailing tailpipe emissions each year for vehicle model years 2027 through 2032. However, some analysts said the measures would push prices higher for regular and electric vehicles.

    This week in earnings

    The first-quarter earnings reporting season will pick up steam in the week ahead, with 60 S&P 500 companies, including six from the Dow Jones Industrial Average
    DJIA,
    -0.42%    ,
    reporting quarterly results, according to FactSet. Those companies will report as Wall Street analysts remain pessimistic about results for the quarter, and the prospect of another so-called “earnings recession” in which profits contract for at least two straight quarters.

    “As of today, the S&P 500 is reporting a year-over-year decline in earnings of -6.5% for the first quarter, which would mark the largest earnings decline reported by the index since Q2 2020 (-31.6%) and the second straight quarter the index has reported a decline in earnings,” FactSet Senior Earnings Analyst John Butters said in a report on Friday.

    After investors cheered JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s
    JPM,
    +7.55%
    quarterly results on Friday — despite Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse and broader recession anxieties — other banking giants, like Bank of America Corp.
    BAC,
    +3.36%    ,
    Goldman Sachs Group Inc.
    GS,
    +1.44%
    and Morgan Stanley
    MS,
    +1.19%
    report during the week ahead. So does Johnson & Johnson
    JNJ,
    -0.16%    ,
    after it agreed to pay as much as $8.9 billion to settle scores of lawsuits alleging that its talc baby powder was linked to cancer. Charles Schwab Corp.
    SCHW,
    -1.40%    ,
    United Airlines Holdings Inc.
    UAL,
    -0.71%
    and AT&T Inc.
    T,
    -0.15%
    also report during the week.

    The calls to put on your calendar

    Supply-chain update, anyone? Shipping rates have fallen. Labor tensions have risen. Railroad safety is under scrutiny. Elsewhere in that industry, hedge funders are applying pressure. Memories of 2021’s supply-chain meltdown are still fresh after it led to shipping delays and put the low-work labor that fuels much of that distribution network under a spotlight.

    At any rate, trucking and logistics company J.B. Hunt Transportation Services Inc.
    JBHT,
    +1.23%
    reports on Monday, while railroad giant CSX Corp.
    CSX,
    +0.13%
    reports on Thursday. Both companies report after a drop-off in demand for goods last year, as inflation remolded consumers’ buying habits. They also report after rail workers threatened to strike over what they said were inadequate sick-time policies. More recently, a group representing the terminal operators at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach alleged that dockworkers were disrupting daily operations at the two massive import gateways, as the workers’ union and the terminal operators try to work out a contract. The quarterly financial reports and earnings calls will offer a look at what the year ahead has in store.

    The number to watch

    Credit-card transactions, charge-offs: Credit-card providers Discover Financial Services
    DFS,
    +0.68%
    and American Express Co.
    AXP,
    +0.57%
    report Wednesday and Thursday, respectively. The companies will report after Discover took a hit in January after it forecast credit-card net charge-offs — a measure of debt a company doesn’t think it’ll get back — that were worse than what Wall Street expected. Similar to the results from the big banks, the results from American Express and Discover will tells us how much consumers are still spending, and whether more are falling behind on their bills, as recession anxieties prevail.

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  • Netflix Is About to Kick Off Tech Earnings. There Are Lots of Questions.

    Netflix Is About to Kick Off Tech Earnings. There Are Lots of Questions.

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    The outlook for


    Netflix


    ‘s first-quarter earnings report, due after the close of trading on Tuesday, is a little muddled.

    The company is still the clear leader in the streaming video market. But it is struggling to show meaningful growth given a weak economy, increasingly aggressive competition, and an apparently saturated U.S. market for streaming.

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  • Western Alliance and First Republic clobbered as regional bank jitters persist despite Fed backstops

    Western Alliance and First Republic clobbered as regional bank jitters persist despite Fed backstops

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    Trading in shares of First Republic Bank and Western Alliance Bancorp ended sharply lower in a tough day of trading for regional banks as fears over bank solvency persisted following the failures of Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank and Silvergate Capital.

    Stocks were periodically halted or paused for trading amid the bank stock bloodbath, which saw many suffering percentage declines well into the double digits. Typically, bank stocks are stable compared with sectors such as technology, with daily moves above 5% being relatively…

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  • Crypto-friendly Signature Bank shut down by regulators after collapses of SVB, Silvergate

    Crypto-friendly Signature Bank shut down by regulators after collapses of SVB, Silvergate

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    State authorities closed New York-based Signature Bank
    SBNY,
    -22.87%
    on Sunday, after Silicon Valley Bank was shut down by regulators on Friday in the biggest bank failure since the 2008 financial crisis.

    All depositors of Signature Bank will be made whole, according to a joint statement by the Department of the Treasury, Federal Reserve and FDIC.

    Also see: Silicon Valley Bank depositors will get ‘all of their money,’ regulators say

    Signature Bank has been popular among crypto companies, especially after crypto-friendly Silvergate Bank
    SI,
    -11.27%
    said last Wednesday it would close its operations.

    Signature Bank provides deposit services for its clients’ digital assets, but does not invest in, does not trade, does not hold on its own balance sheet nor provide custody of digital assets, and does not lend against or make loans collateralized by such assets, the company said.

    The Federal Reserve on Sunday also announced a new emergency loan program to bolster the capacity of the banking system.

    U.S. equity markets traded higher Sunday afternoon, with the Dow futures
    YM00,
    +1.00%
    up 0.5%, and the S&P 500
    ES00,
    +1.40%
    futures up 0.8%. Futures for the Nasdaq 100
    NQ00,
    +1.37%
    rose 0.9%, according to FactSet data.

    Major cryptocurrencies rallied Sunday. Bitcoin
    BTCUSD,
    +3.54%
    surged 6.4% in the past 24 hours to around $21,842 and ether
    ETHUSD,
    +2.36%
    gained 7% to $1,576, according to CoinDesk data.

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  • 20 banks that are sitting on huge potential securities losses—as was SVB

    20 banks that are sitting on huge potential securities losses—as was SVB

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    Silicon Valley Bank has failed following a run on deposits, after its parent company’s share price crashed a record 60% on Thursday.

    Trading of SVB Financial Group’s
    SIVB,
    -60.41%
    stock was halted early Friday, after the shares plunged again in premarket trading. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said SVB was one of a few banks she was “monitoring very carefully.” Reaction poured in from several analysts who discussed the bank’s liquidity risk.

    California regulators closed Silicon Valley Bank and handed the wreckage over to the Federal Deposit Insurance Administration later on Friday.

    Below is the same list of 10 banks we highlighted on Thursday that showed similar red flags to those shown by SVB Financial through the fourth quarter. This time, we will show how much they reported in unrealized losses on securities — an item that played an important role in SVB’s crisis.

    Below that is a screen of U.S. banks with at least $10 billion in total assets, showing those that appeared to have the greatest exposure to unrealized securities losses, as a percentage of total capital, as of Dec. 31.

    First, a quick look at SVB

    Some media reports have referred to SVB of Santa Clara, Calif., as a small bank, but it had $212 billion in total assets as of Dec. 31, making it the 17th largest bank in the Russell 3000 Index
    RUA,
    -1.70%
    as of Dec. 31. That makes it the largest U.S. bank failure since Washington Mutual in 2008.

    One unique aspect of SVB was its decades-long focus on the venture capital industry. The bank’s loan growth had been slowing as interest rates rose. Meanwhile, when announcing its $21 billion dollars in securities sales on Thursday, SVB said it had taken the action not only to lower its interest-rate risk, but because “client cash burn has remained elevated and increased further in February, resulting in lower deposits than forecasted.”

    SVB estimated it would book a $1.8 billion loss on the securities sale and said it would raise $2.25 billion in capital through two offerings of new shares and a convertible bond offering. That offering wasn’t completed.

    So this appears to be an example of what can go wrong with a bank focused on a particular industry. The combination of a balance sheet heavy with securities and relatively light on loans, in a rising-rate environment in which bond prices have declined and in which depositors specific to that industry are themselves suffering from a decline in cash, led to a liquidity problem.

    Unrealized losses on securities

    Banks leverage their capital by gathering deposits or borrowing money either to lend the money out or purchase securities. They earn the spread between their average yield on loans and investments and their average cost for funds.

    The securities investments are held in two buckets:

    • Available for sale — these securities (mostly bonds) can be sold at any time, and under accounting rules are required to be marked to market each quarter. This means gains or losses are recorded for the AFS portfolio continually. The accumulated gains are added to, or losses subtracted from, total equity capital.

    • Held to maturity — these are bonds a bank intends to hold until they are repaid at face value. They are carried at cost and not marked to market each quarter.

    In its regulatory Consolidated Financial Statements for Holding Companies—FR Y-9C, filed with the Federal Reserve, SVB Financial, reported a negative $1.911 billion in accumulated other comprehensive income as of Dec. 31. That is line 26.b on Schedule HC of the report, for those keeping score at home. You can look up regulatory reports for any U.S. bank holding company, savings and loan holding company or subsidiary institution at the Federal Financial Institution Examination Council’s National Information Center. Be sure to get the name of the company or institution right — or you may be looking at the wrong entity.

    Here’s how accumulated other comprehensive income (AOCI) is defined in the report: “Includes, but is not limited to, net unrealized holding gains (losses) on available-for-sale securities, accumulated net gains (losses) on cash flow hedges, cumulative foreign currency translation adjustments, and accumulated defined benefit pension and other postretirement plan adjustments.”

    In other words, it was mostly unrealized losses on SVB’s available-for-sale securities. The bank booked an estimated $1.8 billion loss when selling “substantially all” of these securities on March 8.

    The list of 10 banks with unfavorable interest margin trends

    On the regulatory call reports, AOCI is added to regulatory capital. Since SVB’s AOCI was negative (because of its unrealized losses on AFS securities) as of Dec. 31, it lowered the company’s total equity capital. So a fair way to gauge the negative AOCI to the bank’s total equity capital would be to divide the negative AOCI by total equity capital less AOCI — effectively adding the unrealized losses back to total equity capital for the calculation.

    Getting back to our list of 10 banks that raised similar red margin flags to those of SVB, here’s the same group, in the same order, showing negative AOCI as a percentage of total equity capital as of Dec. 31. We have added SVB to the bottom of the list. The data was provided by FactSet:

    Bank

    		 Ticker

    		 City

    		 AOCI ($mil)

    		 Total equity capital ($mil)

    		 AOCI/ TEC – AOCI

    		 Total assets ($mil)
    Customers Bancorp Inc.

    		 CUBI,
    -13.11%         		West Reading, Pa.

    		 -$163

    		 $1,403

    		 -10.4%

    		 $20,896
    First Republic Bank

    		 FRC,
    -14.84%         		San Francisco

    		 -$331

    		 $17,446

    		 -1.9%

    		 $213,358
    Sandy Spring Bancorp Inc.

    		 SASR,
    -2.91%         		Olney, Md.

    		 -$132

    		 $1,484

    		 -8.2%

    		 $13,833
    New York Community Bancorp Inc.

    		 NYCB,
    -5.99%         		Hicksville, N.Y.

    		 -$620

    		 $8,824

    		 -6.6%

    		 $90,616
    First Foundation Inc.

    		 FFWM,
    -9.11%         		Dallas

    		 -$12

    		 $1,134

    		 -1.0%

    		 $13,014
    Ally Financial Inc.

    		 ALLY,
    -5.70%         		Detroit

    		 -$4,059

    		 $12,859

    		 -24.0%

    		 $191,826
    Dime Community Bancshares Inc.

    		 DCOM,
    -2.81%         		Hauppauge, N.Y.

    		 -$94

    		 $1,170

    		 -7.5%

    		 $13,228
    Pacific Premier Bancorp Inc.

    		 PPBI,
    -1.95%         		Irvine, Calif.

    		 -$265

    		 $2,798

    		 -8.7%

    		 $21,729
    Prosperity Bancshare Inc.

    		 PB,
    -4.46%         		Houston

    		 -$3

    		 $6,699

    		 -0.1%

    		 $37,751
    Columbia Financial, Inc.

    		 CLBK,
    -1.78%         		Fair Lawn, N.J.

    		 -$179

    		 $1,054

    		 -14.5%

    		 $10,408
    SVB Financial Group

    		 SIVB,
    -60.41%         		Santa Clara, Calif.

    		 -$1,911

    		 $16,295

    		 -10.5%

    		 $211,793
    Source: FactSet

    Click on the tickers for more about each bank.

    Read Tomi Kilgore’s detailed guide to the wealth of information available for free on the MarketWatch quote page.

    Ally Financial Inc.
    ALLY,
    -5.70%
    — the third largest bank on the list by Dec. 31 total assets — stands out as having the largest percentage of negative accumulated comprehensive income relative to total equity capital as of Dec. 31.

    To be sure, these numbers don’t mean that a bank is in trouble, or that it will be forced to sell securities for big losses. But SVB had both a troubling pattern for its interest margins and what appeared to be a relatively high percentage of securities losses relative to capital as of Dec. 31.

    Banks with the highest percentage of negative AOCI to capital

    There are 108 banks in the Russell 3000 Index
    RUA,
    -1.70%
    that had total assets of at least $10.0 billion as of Dec. 31. FactSet provided AOCI and total equity capital data for 105 of them. Here are the 20 which had the highest ratios of negative AOCI to total equity capital less AOCI (as explained above) as of Dec. 31:

    Bank

    		 Ticker

    		 City

    		 AOCI ($mil)

    		 Total equity capital ($mil)

    		 AOCI/ (TEC – AOCI)

    		 Total assets ($mil)
    Comerica Inc.

    		 CMA,
    -5.01%         		Dallas

    		 -$3,742

    		 $5,181

    		 -41.9%

    		 $85,406
    Zions Bancorporation N.A.

    		 ZION,
    -2.44%         		Salt Lake City

    		 -$3,112

    		 $4,893

    		 -38.9%

    		 $89,545
    Popular Inc.

    		 BPOP,
    -1.56%         		San Juan, Puerto Rico

    		 -$2,525

    		 $4,093

    		 -38.2%

    		 $67,638
    KeyCorp

    		 KEY,
    -2.55%         		Cleveland

    		 -$6,295

    		 $13,454

    		 -31.9%

    		 $189,813
    Community Bank System Inc.

    		 CBU,
    -0.22%         		DeWitt, N.Y.

    		 -$686

    		 $1,555

    		 -30.6%

    		 $15,911
    Commerce Bancshares Inc.

    		 CBSH,
    -1.61%         		Kansas City, Mo.

    		 -$1,087

    		 $2,482

    		 -30.5%

    		 $31,876
    Cullen/Frost Bankers Inc.

    		 CFR,
    -1.08%         		San Antonio

    		 -$1,348

    		 $3,137

    		 -30.1%

    		 $52,892
    First Financial Bankshares Inc.

    		 FFIN,
    -0.90%         		Abilene, Texas

    		 -$535

    		 $1,266

    		 -29.7%

    		 $12,974
    Eastern Bankshares Inc.

    		 EBC,
    -3.16%         		Boston

    		 -$923

    		 $2,472

    		 -27.2%

    		 $22,686
    Heartland Financial USA Inc.

    		 HTLF,
    -1.26%         		Denver

    		 -$620

    		 $1,735

    		 -26.3%

    		 $20,244
    First Bancorp

    		 FBNC,
    -0.31%         		Southern Pines, N.C.

    		 -$342

    		 $1,032

    		 -24.9%

    		 $10,644
    Silvergate Capital Corp. Class A

    		 SI,
    -11.27%         		La Jolla, Calif.

    		 -$199

    		 $603

    		 -24.8%

    		 $11,356
    Bank of Hawaii Corp

    		 BOH,
    -6.15%         		Honolulu

    		 -$435

    		 $1,317

    		 -24.8%

    		 $23,607
    Synovus Financial Corp.

    		 SNV,
    -2.91%         		Columbus, Ga.

    		 -$1,442

    		 $4,476

    		 -24.4%

    		 $59,911
    Ally Financial Inc

    		 ALLY,
    -5.70%         		Detroit

    		 -$4,059

    		 $12,859

    		 -24.0%

    		 $191,826
    WSFS Financial Corp.

    		 WSFS,
    -2.78%         		Wilmington, Del.

    		 -$676

    		 $2,202

    		 -23.5%

    		 $19,915
    Fifth Third Bancorp

    		 FITB,
    -4.17%         		Cincinnati

    		 -$5,110

    		 $17,327

    		 -22.8%

    		 $207,452
    First Hawaiian Inc.

    		 FHB,
    -3.48%         		Honolulu

    		 -$639

    		 $2,269

    		 -22.0%

    		 $24,666
    UMB Financial Corp.

    		 UMBF,
    -3.35%         		Kansas City, Mo.

    		 -$703

    		 $2,667

    		 -20.9%

    		 $38,854
    Signature Bank

    		 SBNY,
    -22.87%         		New York

    		 -$1,997

    		 $8,013

    		 -20.0%

    		 $110,635

    Again, this is not to suggest that any particular bank on this list based on Dec. 31 data is facing the type of perfect storm that has hurt SVB Financial. A bank sitting on large paper losses on its AFS securities may not need to sell them. In fact Comerica Inc.
    CMA,
    -5.01%    ,
    which tops the list, also improved its interest margin the most over the past four quarters, as shown here.

    But it is interesting to note that Silvergate Capital Corp.
    SI,
    -11.27%    ,
    which focused on serving clients in the virtual currency industry, made the list. It is shuttering its bank subsidiary voluntarily.

    Another bank on the list facing concern among depositors is Signature Bank
    SBNY,
    -22.87%
    of New York, which has a diverse business model, but has also faced a backlash related to the services it provides to the virtual currency industry. The bank’s shares fell 12% on Thursday and were down another 24% in afternoon trading on Friday.

    Signature Bank said in a statement that it was in a “strong, well-diversified financial position.”

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  • Dow suffers worst week since June as U.S. stocks end sharply lower after employment report, banking sector fears

    Dow suffers worst week since June as U.S. stocks end sharply lower after employment report, banking sector fears

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    U.S. stocks ended sharply lower Friday as investors parsed mixed signals from the February jobs report amid ongoing concerns about contagion in the banking sector from the troubles at Silicon Valley Bank.

    How stocks traded
    • The Dow Jones Industrial Average
      DJIA,
      -1.07%
      dropped 345.22 points, or 1.1%, to close at 31,909.64, its fourth straight day of declines for its longest losing streak since December.

    • The S&P 500
      SPX,
      -1.45%
      fell 56.73 points, or 1.4%, to finish at 3,861.59.

    • Nasdaq Composite
      COMP,
      -1.76%
      sank 199.47 points, or 1.8%, to end at 11,138.89.

    For the week, the Dow sank 4.4%, S&P 500 dropped 4.5% and the Nasdaq shed 4.7%, according to Dow Jones Market Data. The Dow booked its worst week since June, the S&P 500 saw its biggest weekly percentage decline since September, and the Nasdaq had its biggest percentage slide since November.

    What drove markets

    U.S. stocks slumped amid investor concerns about the banking sector after the closure of Silicon Valley Bank by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp and in the wake of the monthly employment report released Friday.

    In a sign of investor anxiety, the CBOE Volatility Index
    VIX,
    +9.69%
    was up Friday afternoon at almost 25, after jumping Thursday, according to FactSet data, last check.

    “Bears came out of hibernation this week after waking up to a warning shot from the banking space,” said Adam Turnquist, chief technical strategist for LPL Financial, in emailed comments Friday, pointing to the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank.

    Silicon Valley Bank was closed Friday by the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. was appointed receiver, with the bank becoming the first FDIC-backed institution to fail this year.

    Read: Bank ETFs fall amid concerns over SVB and ‘crack’ in financial system after rate hikes

    The SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF
    KRE,
    -4.39%
    was down more than 4% Friday afternoon, FactSet data show, while shares of Bank of America Corp.
    BAC,
    -0.88%
    closed 0.9% lower, Citigroup Inc.
    C,
    -0.53%
    slid 0.5% and JPMorgan Chase & Co.
    JPM,
    +2.54%
    rose 2.5%.

    Worries over the banking sector are “probably overshadowing” the positive aspects of the employment report, said Karim El Nokali, investment strategist at Schroders, in a phone interview Friday.

    The U.S. employment report for February showed the labor market continued to grow at a robust pace last month, with the U.S. economy adding 311,000 jobs, more than the 225,000 that economists polled by the Wall Street Journal had expected.

    But “if you dig a little deeper” into the report, average hourly earnings came in “a little lighter than expected” while labor-force participation ticked up, which are positive developments from an inflation standpoint, said El Nokali.

    Average hourly wages grew by 0.2%, a slower rate than the 0.3% rate economists had expected. It was also less than the 0.3% increase in January. The unemployment rate ticked higher to 3.6%, helped by an increase in the labor-force participation rate.

    “On the margin,” said El Nokali, the employment report was “positive for the equity market.” He said it would “probably argue more” for the Federal Reserve to raise its benchmark rate by 25 basis points at its policy meeting later this month, as opposed to a 50-basis-point hike that investors had been fearing leading up to the employment data.

    See: Jobs report shows strong 311,000 gain in February, puts pressure on Fed for bigger rate hike

    Fed Chair Jerome Powell said earlier this week that the “totality” of jobs and inflation data would determine whether the central bank would go back to raising its policy interest rate by another 50 basis points at its meeting later in March.

    After climbing earlier in the week, odds of a 50-basis-point rate hike by the Fed have moderated over the past 24 hours. Traders now see a 62% chance of the central bank raising its benchmark rate by 25 basis points, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.

    Meanwhile, Treasury yields sank Friday.

    The yield on the 2-year Treasury note
    TMUBMUSD02Y,
    4.594%
    dropped 31.4 basis points to 4.586%, while the 10-year Treasury yields fell 22.8 basis points to 3.694%, according to Dow Jones Market Data. The Treasury yield curve remains massively inverted, which has contributed to banks’ woes.

    Companies in focus

    —Steve Goldstein contributed to this report.

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  • Dow tumbles over 400 points in final hour of trade as investors await monthly employment report

    Dow tumbles over 400 points in final hour of trade as investors await monthly employment report

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    U.S. stocks extended losses in the final hour of trade on Thursday, while awaiting Friday’s February employment data that could help decide how large an interest rate hike the Federal Reserve will impose at its next meeting in two weeks.

    Financial sector stocks were particularly hard hit along with cryptocurrencies after Silvergate Capital Corp., collapsed overnight amid growing scrutiny in Washington. Other financial stocks fell, dragged down by SVB Financial Group, which fell by a record amount.

    How are stocks trading
    • The S&P 500
      SPX,
      -1.85%
      dropped 56 points, or 1.4%, to 3,936

    • Dow Jones Industrial Average
      DJIA,
      -1.66%
      was off 412 points, or 1.3%, to 32,387

    • Nasdaq Composite
      COMP,
      -2.05%
      declined by 174 points, or 1.5%, to 11,399

    Both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq finished higher on Wednesday, with only the Dow finishing in the red, while all three indexes remained on track for weekly losses. A weekly drop for the S&P 500 would mark its fourth such pullback in five weeks.

    What’s driving markets

    U.S. stocks trimmed earlier gains and extended losses on Thursday afternoon after trading modestly higher after the open when the latest weekly jobless claims data showed an unexpectedly large uptick in the number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits.

    The number of Americans who applied for unemployment benefits in early March jumped to a 10-week high of 211,000, the highest level since Christmas. That’s higher than the 195,000 new applicants that economists polled by the Wall Street Journal had anticipated.

    Economists said the data suggest that the labor market might be starting to slow, which is seen as a necessary prerequisite for driving inflation back to the Fed’s 2% target.

    “The labor market might just be on the cusp of an inflection point,” said Peter Boockvar, chief investment officer of Bleakley Financial Group, in emailed commentary.

    Investors are now looking ahead to Friday’s closely watched February jobs report from the Department of Labor. Economists polled by the Wall Street Journal expect 225,000 jobs were created last month after 517,000 new jobs were created in January, a number that was much higher than economists had anticipated.

    “If we do get the expected 200,000, or really anything between say 180,000 and 240,000, this would be a return to the prior trend and would signal that last month was indeed a one-off,” said Brad McMillan, chief investment officer of Commonwealth Financial Network, in emailed comments.

    “That would be perceived as a positive by the Fed and markets, suggesting that inflation may start moderating again but is still high enough to allow for continued economic growth.”

    See: Wall Street sees smaller 225,000 increase in U.S. jobs in February. A much larger gain might spur stiffer Fed rate hike.

    The Russell 2000
    RUT,
    -2.75%    ,
    the small-cap index, is on pace to close below its 50-day moving average for the first time since January 9, 2023, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

    Regional bank stocks underperformed on Thursday. Shares of Silicon Valley Bank parent company SVB Financial Group
    SIVB,
    -60.41%
    plummeted more than 61% after the company disclosed large losses from securities sales and a stock offering meant to provide a boost to its balance sheet. SVB is on pace to book the biggest one-day selloff since the dotcom boom, while its trading was halted for volatility multiple times, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

    Signature Bank 
    SBNY,
    -12.18%
     shares dropped 11.2%undefined

    The KBW Bank Index
    BKX,
    -7.70%
    of 24 leading banks slumped 7.1%, on pace for its worst day since June 26, 2020, according to Dow Jones Market Data. SPDR S&P Bank ETF
    KBE,
    -7.30%
    was down 6.5%.

    See: SVB Financial’s stock suffers biggest drop in 25 years after large losses on securities sales, equity offering

    Treasury yields fell with the yield on the 2-year note BX:TMUBMUSD02Yslipped to 4.885% from 5.064% on Wednesday. 

    Stocks suffered earlier in the week after Powell said during testimony on Capitol Hill that rates would likely need to rise even further than market participants had expected. However, the main indexes saw some relief after the Fed chief clarified that policymakers hadn’t yet decided on the size of the next rate hike.

    Investors have already digested several reports on the labor market this week, including a report on the number of job openings, which showed that the number of Americans quitting their jobs had fallen below 4 million in January for the first time in 19 months.

    “The big picture is that the labor market is easing, but it’s still tighter than it was before the pandemic,” said Sonu Varghese, a global macro strategist at Carson Group.

    See: Bad economic data won’t be good for stocks, but good data will be even worse, this JPMorgan technical strategist says

    Companies in focus

    — Jamie Chisholm contributed to this article

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  • Silvergate Capital stock tanks as company plans to wind down its crypto-friendly bank

    Silvergate Capital stock tanks as company plans to wind down its crypto-friendly bank

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    Silvergate Capital Corp.
    SI,
    -5.76%
    shares plunged more than 30% in after-hours trading Wednesday after the company said it intended to wind down operations and voluntarily liquidate its subsidiary Silvergate Bank, a crypto-friendly lender.

    The stock’s plunge would take it to a record low if losses hold through regular trading Thursday.

    The La Jolla, Calif.-based lender made the announcement after it said last week in a regulatory filing that it was at risk of “being less than well-capitalized,” and discontinued its crypto-payments network.

    As one of the few crypto-friendly banks, the liquidation of Silvergate Bank points to uncertainty in the future relationships between crypto companies and banks, who play an essential role in the conversion of fiat currencies into crypto.

    Read: Crypto traders may lean toward stablecoins after Silvergate ceases crypto payments network 

    Silvergate Bank’s liquidation plan includes full repayment of all deposits, according to a statement Wednesday.

    The company is considering the best way to resolve claims and preserve the residual value of its assets, Silvergate Capital said. All of the company’s other deposit-related services remain operational, it said.

    Silvergate also said it hired Centerview Partners as financial adviser and Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP as legal adviser.

    Several crypto companies, such as Coinbase Global Inc.
    COIN,
    +1.81%    ,
     Galaxy Digital, Paxos and Circle, said last week that they would cease some or all payment transactions with Silvergate Bank.

    Representatives at Silvergate didn’t immediately respond to a request seeking comment.

    Signature Bank
    SBNY,
    -1.47%    ,
    another crypto-friendly lender, saw its shares slide 3.7% in after-hours trading Wednesday.

    Major cryptocurrencies were steady Wednesday. Bitcoin
    BTCUSD,
    -1.30%
    lost 0.3% to around $21,981, while ether
    ETHUSD,
    -1.12%
    gained 0.2% to about $1,550, according to CoindDesk data.

    Read: Here’s the real challenge facing Silvergate and other ‘crypto banks,’ says this short seller 

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  • Silvergate Discontinues a Key Service. It’s a Big Deal.

    Silvergate Discontinues a Key Service. It’s a Big Deal.

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    Silvergate Discontinues a Key Service. It’s a Big Deal.

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  • Spotify to lay off nearly 600 employees

    Spotify to lay off nearly 600 employees

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    After slowing its pace of hiring last year, Spotify Technology SA confirmed Monday that it was laying off employees, adding to the wave of jobs cuts sweeping across the tech industry.

    The streaming music service disclosed in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that it was reducing its workforce by about 6%, which translates to about 588 jobs.

    Bloomberg News had originally reported over the weekend that the company was planning job cuts as soon as this week.

    The Luxembourg-based company said it expects to record charges of EUR35 million to EUR45 million ($38.1 million to $48.9 million) related to severance payments.

    Spotify’s U.S.-listed shares
    SPOT,
    +4.63%
    rallied 4.4% toward a four-month high in premarket trading,

    In October, Spotify laid off at least 38 employees at its Gimlet and Parcast podcast units. Last June, Spotify Chief Executive Daniel Ek told employees that the company would reduce hiring by 25%, according to Bloomberg and CNBC reports.

    As of the end of its third quarter, Spotify had about 9,800 employees, according to its earnings report. More than 55,000 tech workers have been laid off so far in 2023, according to the website Layoffs.fyi, including 12,000 from Google parent Alphabet Inc., 10,000 from Microsoft Corp. and hundreds more from Intel Corp.

    Stockholm-based Spotify has been pressured by massive spending on podcasts in recent years, which have yet to deliver profits and have weighed on margins. In June, Ek predicted a meaningful ramp in profitability within the next couple of years.

    Separately, Spotify said Chief Content & Advertising Business Officer Dawn Ostroff will leave the company.

    Spotify shares have sunk about 50% over the past 12 months, compared with the S&P 500’s
    SPX,
    +1.89%
    10% decline over that time.

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  • Netflix Surprises With a Subscriber Beat and Hastings Steps Back

    Netflix Surprises With a Subscriber Beat and Hastings Steps Back

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    Netflix


    posted better-than-expected subscriber growth in the fourth quarter, adding 7.66 million net new subscribers, well ahead of the 4.5 million the company had projected.

    The company also announced that founder and co-CEO Reed Hastings was moving to the executive chairman role to “complete our succession process.” Netflix said that Chief operating officer Greg Peters will join Ted Sarandos as co-CEO of the company.

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  • Netflix stock leaps after subscriber success in final quarter with Reed Hastings as CEO

    Netflix stock leaps after subscriber success in final quarter with Reed Hastings as CEO

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    Netflix Inc. added more subscribers than expected in the final quarter of 2022, sending shares higher in after-hours trading Thursday even as founder Reed Hastings prepared to step down from the chief executive role he has held since the company’s inception.

    Netflix
    NFLX,
    -3.23%
    announced that Hastings has moved to an executive chairman role, while Chief Operating Officer Greg Peters moves up to co-CEO, joining Ted Sarandos.

    “Since Reed started to delegate management to us, Greg and I have built a strong operating model based on our shared values and like-minded approach to growth,” Sarandos said in a letter to shareholders. “I am so excited to start this new chapter with Greg as co-CEO.”

    In a separate letter, Hastings said “in the last 2½ years, I’ve increasingly delegated the management of Netflix” to Sarandos and Peters.

    “It was a baptism by fire, given COVID and recent challenges within our business. But they’ve both managed incredibly well, ensuring Netflix continues to improve and developing a clear path to reaccelerate our revenue and earnings growth,” Hastings wrote. “So the board and I believe it’s the right time to complete my succession.”

    “More and more, they’ve been running the company,” Hastings said in a video call late Thursday. He called the move 10 days in the making.

    The company revealed on Thursday fourth-quarter revenue of $7.85 billion, compared with $7.71 billion a year ago. Earnings were $55 million, or 12 cents a share, down from $607 million, or $1.33 a share, last year; the decline was due to a $463 million noncash charge related to debt held in Europe, executives said.

    Wall Street analysts tracked by FactSet had estimated revenue of $7.86 billion on earnings of 55 cents a share. Shares increased more than 6% in after-hours trading immediately following the release of the results, after closing with a 3.2% decrease at $315.78.

    The streaming-video company reported that it added 7.7 million subscribers in the final three months of the year; analysts had expected 4.58 million, according to FactSet. Netflix will no longer offer guidance on that statistic, which has typically moved Netflix shares more than any other metric.

    In October, Netflix executives predicted the company would add a net 4.5 million subscribers in the fourth quarter as it bounces back from a lull in growth. Netflix reported losses in subscribers for the first two quarters of 2022, prompting leaders to unveil an ad-based service in November for customers who want to pay less, and plans to crack down on password sharing.

    “2022 was a tough year, with a bumpy start but a brighter finish,” executives wrote in their letter to shareholders Thursday. “We believe we have a clear path to reaccelerate our revenue growth: continuing to improve all aspects of Netflix, launching paid sharing and building our ads offering. As always, our north stars remain pleasing our members and building even greater profitability over time.”

    Executives guided for 4% revenue growth year-over-year in the first quarter, which would suggest roughly $8.2 billion in sales, while analysts were projecting $8.15 billion on average, according to FactSet. Executives said they “expect constant currency revenue growth to accelerate over the course of the year,” but that the password-sharing crackdown they expect to roll out widely in the first quarter could cause some bumpiness early in the year.

    Don’t miss: Netflix will crack down on password sharing — here’s how it will work

    “From our experience in Latin America, we expect some cancel reaction in each market when we roll out paid sharing, which impacts near-term member growth,” they wrote. “But as borrower households begin to activate their own stand-alone accounts and extra member accounts are added, we expect to see improved overall revenue, which is our goal with all plan and pricing changes.”

    The video-streaming pioneer offered first-quarter earnings guidance of $1.28 billion, or $2.82 a share; FactSet analysts are forecasting $2.98 a share.

    Netflix’s results arrived in the wake of increasingly bullish research notes. At least two analysts this week raised their price targets on Netflix shares, citing a weaker dollar. Truist analyst Matthew Thornton jacked his target to $339 from $210 while maintaining a hold rating, and UBS’s John Hodulik lifted his price to $350 from $250.

    For more: In Netflix’s unpredictable finale, the focus is on financial estimates

    “We view Netflix as one of the most durable businesses in our coverage as subscription low-cost entertainment with little-to-no exposure to advertising (still very small/new in 2023) or other highly cyclical/macro sensitive revenues,” Truist’s Thornton wrote. “While there could be some pressure on churn and gross adds (as households tighten budgets), we think this should be at least partly offset by increased cord-cutting (going 100% streaming from more expensive linear TV bundles).”

    Optimism was not universal, however. Barclays analyst Kannan Venkateshwar expected Netflix to add roughly half the new subscribers executives had forecast, 2.7 million, based on a drop in app downloads.

    Netflix’s stock has plunged 38% over the past 12 months. The broader S&P 500 index
    SPX,
    -0.76%
    has declined 13% over the past year.

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  • This company has wiped out more investor wealth in 2022 than Tesla

    This company has wiped out more investor wealth in 2022 than Tesla

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    Elon Musk has been trying this week to defend Tesla’s abysmal stock performance in 2022. The electric vehicle giant has seen its stock plummet by 61% this year, making it the 11th-worst performing stock in the S&P 500 in 2022.

    “As bank savings account interest rates, which are guaranteed, start to approach stock market returns, which are *not* guaranteed, people will increasingly move their money out of stocks into cash, thus causing stocks to drop,” Musk tweeted.

    You might expect that Tesla’s stock drop has wiped out more investor wealth than any other stock in the world this year. But you would be wrong.

    If we look at declines in market capitalization — the value of companies’ common-shares outstanding — Tesla
    TSLA,
    -1.76%
    has been the fourth worst-performing stock in the benchmark S&P 500 this year, as of 1 p.m. ET on Dec. 21:

    Company

    		 Ticker

    		 2022 market cap change ($bil)

    		 Intraday market cap on Dec. 21 ($bil)

    		 Dec. 31, 2021 market cap ($bil)

    		 2022 price change
    Amazon.com Inc.

    		 AMZN,
    +1.74%         		-$805

    		 $886

    		 $1,691

    		 -48%
    Apple Inc.

    		 AAPL,
    -0.28%         		-$753

    		 $2,160

    		 $2,913

    		 -24%
    Microsoft Corp.

    		 MSFT,
    +0.23%         		-$700

    		 $1,825

    		 $2,525

    		 -27%
    Tesla Inc.

    		 TSLA,
    -1.76%         		-$622

    		 $439

    		 $1,061

    		 -61%
    Meta Platforms Inc. Class A

    		 META,
    +0.79%         		-$466

    		 $318

    		 $784

    		 -64%
    Nvidia Corp.

    		 NVDA,
    -0.87%         		-$329

    		 $406

    		 $735

    		 -44%
    PayPal Holdings Inc.

    		 PYPL,
    +0.67%         		-$143

    		 $79

    		 $222

    		 -63%
    Netflix Inc.

    		 NFLX,
    -0.94%         		-$134

    		 $133

    		 $267

    		 -51%
    Walt Disney Co.

    		 DIS,
    +1.55%         		-$122

    		 $160

    		 $282

    		 -44%
    Salesforce Inc.

    		 CRM,
    +0.19%         		-$119

    		 $131

    		 $250

    		 -49%
    Source: FactSet

    On a percentage basis, all these stocks have performed worse than the full S&P 500, which has fallen 19%, excluding dividends.

    Amazon.com Inc.
    AMZN,
    +1.74%
    has erased more shareholder wealth than any other publicly traded company in 2022. In total, investors in Amazon have lost $804.6 billion this year. The stock is down 48% in 2022.

    Apple Inc.
    AAPL,
    -0.28%
    and Microsoft Corp.
    MSFT,
    +0.23%
    have also suffered larger market-cap declines than Tesla, by virtue of their sheer size.

    The companies have different fiscal and annual period ends, but if we look at data for the past three reported quarters and compare to the same period a year earlier, here’s how the four stack up:

    Company

    		 Ticker

    		 Change in sales for three quarters from year-earlier period

    		 Change in EPS for three quarters from year-earlier period
    Amazon.com Inc.

    		 AMZN,
    +1.74%
     

    		 10%

    		 N/A
    Apple Inc.

    		  
    AAPL,
    -0.28%         		6%

    		 2%
    Microsoft Corp.

    		  
    MSFT,
    +0.23%         		14%

    		 -2%
    Tesla Inc.

    		  
    TSLA,
    -1.76%         		58%

    		 169%
    Source: FactSet

    Amazon showed a net loss of $3 billion for the first three quarters of 2022 as the company neared the end of its extraordinary multiyear effort to build out its warehouse and fulfillment infrastructure. For the first three quarters of 2021, the company booked $19 billion in profits. When announcing Amazon’s third-quarter results CEO Andy Jassy said the company was working methodically toward “a stronger cost structure for the business moving forward.”

    The incredible growth of Amazon’s cloud business has stalled and disappointed the expectations the company had nurtured on Wall Street. The Amazon Web Services business is facing increasing competition from the likes of Microsoft and its customers are pulling back. Meanwhile, retail sales have also come in weak going into the Christmas and holiday season. 

    Amazon’s stock has declined 22% since it closed at $110.96 on Oct. 27, right before it disappointed investors not only with its third-quarter results, but with its outlook: It expects to break even during the holiday quarter. Analysts polled by FactSet had previously expected a profit of more than $5 billion.

    Tesla stands in contrast to Amazon, as you can see on the table above. Its sales grew by 58% during the first three quarters of 2022 from the year-earlier period and its earnings per share rose nearly threefold.

    This has been a year of significant declines for shares of giant tech-oriented companies, especially those that had traded at lofty price-to-earnings valuations — that group includes Amazon and Tesla. In fact, these companies have given up all their pandemic era gains int he stock market.

    But with Tesla’s results so outstanding through the first three quarters of 2022, it raises the question: How much of the drop in the electric car makers share price was tied to Musk’s actions as CEO of Twitter, which he acquired on Oct. 27 after a monthslong saga? And how much of a relief rally, if any, might there be for Tesla if Musk, as expected, steps down as Twitter CEO?

    How about some bottom-feeding?

    Here’s the same list of 10 stocks in the S&P 500 that have seen the largest declines in market cap this year, with a summary of analysts’ ratings, consensus price targets and declines in their forward price-to-earnings ratios:

    Company

    		 Ticker

    		 Share “buy” ratings

    		 Dec. 21 closing price

    		 Cons. price target

    		 Implied 12-month upside potential

    		 Forward P/E as of Dec. 20

    		 Forward P/E as of Dec. 31, 2021
    Amazon.com Inc.

    		 AMZN,
    +1.74%         		91%

    		 $85.19

    		 $134.85

    		 58%

    		 49.3

    		 64.9
    Apple Inc.

    		 AAPL,
    -0.28%         		74%

    		 $132.30

    		 $173.44

    		 31%

    		 21.4

    		 30.2
    Microsoft Corp.

    		 MSFT,
    +0.23%         		91%

    		 $241.80

    		 $293.06

    		 21%

    		 23.7

    		 34.0
    Tesla Inc.

    		 TSLA,
    -1.76%         		63%

    		 $137.80

    		 $272.64

    		 98%

    		 24.6

    		 120.3
    Meta Platforms Inc. Class A

    		 META,
    +0.79%         		63%

    		 $117.09

    		 $145.45

    		 24%

    		 14.5

    		 23.5
    Nvidia Corp.

    		 NVDA,
    -0.87%         		68%

    		 $160.85

    		 $195.72

    		 22%

    		 39.2

    		 58.0
    PayPal Holdings Inc.

    		 PYPL,
    +0.67%         		71%

    		 $68.76

    		 $104.32

    		 52%

    		 14.5

    		 36.0
    Netflix Inc.

    		 NFLX,
    -0.94%         		47%

    		 $288.19

    		 $302.89

    		 5%

    		 28.4

    		 45.6
    Walt Disney Co.

    		 DIS,
    +1.55%         		82%

    		 $87.02

    		 $119.60

    		 37%

    		 19.8

    		 34.2
    Salesforce Inc.

    		 CRM,
    +0.19%         		78%

    		 $128.45

    		 $195.18

    		 52%

    		 23.4

    		 53.5
    Source: FactSet

    A majority of analysts see a golden path ahead for 2023 for all of these stocks except for Netflix.

    For more information about any of these companies, click the tickers.

    Click here for a detailed guide to the wealth of information available for free on the MarketWatch quote page.

    Don’t miss: 11 high-yield dividend stocks that are Wall Street’s favorites for 2023

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  • As subscription prices rise, here’s what’s worth streaming in November 2022: ‘The Crown,’ ‘Willow,’ ‘Mythic Quest’ and more

    As subscription prices rise, here’s what’s worth streaming in November 2022: ‘The Crown,’ ‘Willow,’ ‘Mythic Quest’ and more

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    So here’s some bad news and some, well, slightly less bad news.

    First, the bad-bad: Streaming prices are increasing almost across the board (Hulu and Apple TV+ rose in October, Disney+ will rise in December, while Netflix and Prime Video rose earlier this year), putting even more of a crunch on budget-conscious consumers.

    But now the less bad: If you can put up with commercials, there are cheaper, ad-supported versions coming your way (Netflix on Nov. 3, Disney+ in December).

    Of course, the other money-saving solution is to double down on a churn-and-return strategy and cut down on recurring subscriptions even more.

    Each month, this column offers tips on how to maximize your streaming and your budget, rating the major services as a “play,” “pause” or “stop” — similar to investment analysts’ traditional ratings of buy, hold and sell. We also pick the best content to help you make your monthly decisions.

    Consumers can take full advantage of cord-cutting by churning and returning — adding and dropping streaming services each month. All it takes is good planning. Keep in mind that a billing cycle starts when you sign up, not necessarily at the beginning of the month, and keep an eye out for lower-priced tiers, limited-time discounts, free trials and cost-saving bundles. There are a lot of offers out there, but the deals don’t last forever.

    Here’s a look at what’s coming to the various streaming services in November 2022, and what’s really worth the monthly subscription fee.

    Netflix ($6.99 a month for basic with ads starting Nov. 3, $9.99 basic without ads, $15.49 standard without ads, $19.99 premium without ads)

    Netflix has another really good month coming up.

     “The Crown” (Nov. 9), returns for its fifth season, set this time in the 1990s as scandals involving Charles and Diana plaster London’s tabloids and the role of Britain’s monarchy in modern society is thrown into question. Imelda Staunton takes over the role of Queen Elizabeth, with Dominic West as Prince Charles, Elizabeth Debicki as Princess Diana and Jonathan Pryce as Prince Philip. Controversy has already erupted over the new season, which will include Diana’s tragic death, as some have spoken out about the show’s increasingly blurry line between truth and fiction. Pryce recently told Vanity Fair, ““The vast majority of people know it’s a drama,” not a documentary. And it’s a pretty good drama.

    Netflix
    NFLX,
    -0.41%
    hasn’t had much success developing original sitcoms, but is hoping to finally break through with “Blockbuster” (Nov. 3), a workplace comedy set at the last Blockbuster video store in America, starring network sitcom veterans Randall Park (“Fresh Off the Boat”) and Melissa Fumero (“Brooklyn Nine-Nine”). There’s also “Wednesday” (Nov. 23), a horror-comedy series from Tim Burton starring Jenna Ortega as the terrifyingly snarky teen Wednesday Addams, with Catherine Zeta-Jones and Luis Guzman playing her creepy and kooky parents, Morticia and Gomez; and the third and final season of the dark comedy “Dead to Me” (Nov. 17), starring Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini, which returns after a two-and-a-half-year layoff.

    On the drama side, there’s “1899” (Nov. 17), a mystery-horror series set aboard a transatlantic steamer ship at the turn of the last century, from the makers of the mind-bending German sci-fi series “Dark” — and if it’s even half as trippy and addictive, it’ll be terrific; Part 1 of the fourth season of the supernatural drama “Manifest” (Nov. 4), which Netflix rescued from NBC’s cancellation; and Season 6 of the soapy Spanish high-school drama “Elite” (Nov 18).

    More: Here’s everything new coming to Netflix in November 2022, and what’s leaving

    There’s also the timely documentary “FIFA Uncovered” (Nov. 9), digging into the scandal-plagued organization behind the World Cup; “Pepsi, Where’s My Jet” (Nov. 17), a documentary about a man who sued Pepsi in the 1980s to get a free Harrier fighter jet; the fifth installment of “The Great British Baking Show: Holidays” (Nov. 18); and the new standup comedy special from the outgoing “Daily Show” host, “Trevor Noah: I Wish You Would” (Nov. 22).

    On the movie front, there’s “Enola Holmes 2” (Nov. 4), a sequel to the hit 2020 movie about Sherlock Holmes’ younger sister, played by Millie Bobby Brown (“Stranger Things”), as young detective Enola sets out to investigate her first case; “Slumberland” (Nov. 18), a comedy adventure about a young girl exploring the dreamworld, starring Mallow Barkley and Jason Mamoa; and Lindsay Lohan is back with a Christmas rom-com, “Falling for Christmas” (Nov. 10).

    Who’s Netflix for? Fans of buzz-worthy original shows and movies.

    Play, pause or stop? Play. When it’s at the top of its game, as it is again this month, Netflix is a must-have, at whatever price tier.

    Disney+ ($7.99 a month)

    The TV world has been abuzz about prequels for the past few months, but it’s all about sequels in November for Disney+.

    The biggest of the bunch is “Willow” (Nov. 30), a follow-up series to the cult-favorite 1988 fantasy movie of the same name. The magical adventure is set 20 years after the events of the film, and Warwick Davis returns as farmer-turned-sorcerer Willow Ufgood, who leads an unlikely group of heroes on a quest to save their world. It should be fun for the whole family.

    Disney
    DIS,
    +1.45%
    also has “Disenchanted” (Nov. 18), a sequel to the 2007 hit movie “Enchanted.” The musical fantasy is set 10 years after the happily-ever-after ending, with Giselle (Amy Adams) questioning her happiness and inadvertently setting her two worlds askew. Patrick Dempsey, James Marsden and Maya Rudolph co-star. And then there’s “The Santa Clauses” (Nov. 16), as Tim Allen reprises his role of Santa Claus, who’s now facing retirement and looking for a replacement, in a new miniseries spinoff of the family-movie trilogy.

    Also of note: “The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special” (Nov. 25), as Star-Lord and the gang kidnap Kevin Bacon; the live performance “Elton John: Live from Dodger Stadium” (Nov. 20), the pop icon’s final show in North America; and weekly episodes of “Dancing With the Stars” (season finale Nov. 21), the “Star Wars” prequel “Andor” (season finale Nov. 23) and “The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers” (season finale Nov. 30).

    And heads up: Prices for the ad-free tier will jump to $10.99 a month in December, after Disney+ launches its ad-supported tier for $7.99 a month.

    Who’s Disney+ for? Families with kids, hardcore “Star Wars” and Marvel fans. For people not in those groups, Disney’s library can be lacking.

    Play, pause or stop? Play. There’s something for everyone in the household — even grumps who aren’t “Star Wars” fans can get into “Andor,” which absolutely works as a dark, gripping, spy thriller. Meanwhile, fans are realizing it just might be the best “Star Wars” series or movie ever made.

    HBO Max ($9.99 a month with ads, or $14.99 without ads)

    HBO Max is bringing back  “The Sex Lives of College Girls” (Nov. 17) for its second season. Created by Mindy Kaling and Justin Noble (who also teamed on Netflix’s “Never Have I Ever”), the ensemble comedy about four college roommates picks up right after Thanksgiving break, with the girls organizing a “sex-positive” male strip show. It’s sharp, funny, and less cringey than its title suggests.

    Then there’s “A Christmas Story Christmas” (Nov. 17), a nostalgic sequel to the 1983 classic, starring Peter Billingsley as a grown-up Ralphie who returns to his hometown to try to give his kids a perfect Christmas. It’s risky reviving such a beloved movie, and this could either be wonderful or terrible, there’s really no middle ground.

    HBO Max also has a slew of documentaries, including “Love, Lizzo” (Nov. 24), about the pop superstar’s inspiring life story; “Shaq” (Nov. 23), a four-part docuseries chronicling the rise to superstardom of NBA Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal; “Low Country: The Murdaugh Dynasty” (Nov. 3), a true-crime series about a South Carolina lawyer’s scandalous fall; and “Say Hey, Willie Mays!” (Nov. 8), a film exploring the life, career and social impact of the greatest baseball player who ever played the game.

    See more: Here’s everything new coming to HBO Max in November 2022, and what’s leaving

    And every week brings new episodes of Season 2 of the very dark vacation comedy “The White Lotus,” Season 3 of “Pennyworth: The Origin of Batman’s Butler” and Season 2 of the cult documentary “The Vow.”

    Who’s HBO Max for? HBO fans and movie lovers.

    Play, pause or stop? Pause and think it over. “The White Lotus” and “The Sex Lives of College Girls” are both worth watching, but beyond that it’s kinda “meh” this month. And Max is too pricey for “meh.”

    Amazon Prime Video ($14.99 a month)

    Amazon
    AMZN,
    -6.80%
    is bringing the star power in November, starting with the Western drama series “The English” (Nov. 11), starring Emily Blunt as an aristocratic Englishwoman who teams with a Pawnee scout (Chaske Spencer) on a mission to cross the violent 1890s American frontier. It looks stylish and bloody — and promising.

    Meanwhile, James Corden and Sally Hawkins star in “Mammals” (Nov. 11), a dark comedy series about modern marriage; pop star-turned-actor Harry Styles stars in “My Policeman” (Nov. 4), a drama about forbidden romance that’s getting very “meh” reviews in its theatrical release; and Kristen Bell, Ben Platt and Allison Janney star in “The People We Hate at the Wedding” (Nov. 18), a raunchy comedy set at a dysfunctional family wedding.

    More: Here’s what’s coming to Amazon’s Prime Video in November 2022

    There’s also NFL Thursday Night Football every week, and new episodes of the intriguing sci-fi drama “The Peripheral,” which is giving very “Westworld”-but-slightly-less-confusing vibes.

    Who’s Amazon Prime Video for? Movie lovers, TV-series fans who value quality over quantity.

    Play, pause or stop? Pause. There’s good stuff here, but nothing that feels must-see.

    Paramount+ ($4.99 a month with ads but not live CBS, $9.99 without ads)

    Taylor Sheridan (“Yellowstone,” “1883,” “Mayor of Kingstown”) has another new series: “Tulsa King” (Nov. 13), starring Sylvester Stallone as a former New York mafia capo who gets freed from prison after 25 years and settles in Tulsa, Okla., to build a criminal empire of his own. Showrunner Terence Winter (“The Sopranos,” “Boardwalk Empire”) knows a thing or two about mob shows, and this one could be good.

    Paramount+ also has the spinoff series “Criminal Minds: Evolution” (Nov. 24), about an elite team of FBI profilers unraveling a network of serial killers; the family movie “Fantasy Football” (Nov. 25), about a girl who can magically control how her NFL-player dad performs on the field; and the series finale of “The Good Fight” (Nov. 10), which its creators promise will be “cataclysmic.”

    There’s also the Thanksgiving Day Parade (Nov. 24) and a ton of live sports, including college football on Saturdays, NFL football on Sundays (and Thanksgiving Day), and group-stage matches for UEFA’s Champions and Europe leagues.

    Who’s Paramount+ for? Gen X cord-cutters who miss live sports and familiar Paramount Global 
    PARA,
    +3.37%
     broadcast and cable shows.

    Play, pause or stop? Pause. Besides its solid live-sports lineup, it’s a good time to catch up and binge “The Good Fight,” and “Tulsa King” could be worth a watch too.

    Hulu ($7.99 a month with ads, or $14.99 with no ads)

    Hulu has a couple of interesting offerings in November, but nothing that screams must-see. Yet, at least.

    FX’s “Fleishman Is in Trouble” (Nov. 17) stars Jesse Eisenberg as a newly divorced dad whose promiscuous dive into app-based dating is disrupted when his ex-wife disappears and leaves him with their kids. Claire Danes, Lizzy Caplan and Adam Brody co-star in the eight-episode drama, which is based on Taffy Brodesser-Akner’s best-selling novel.

    There’s also “Welcome to Chippendales” (Nov. 22), a true-crime series starring Kumail Nanjiani as the immigrant founder of the 1980s male-stripper franchise, which chronicles his business empire’s rise and fall amid a blizzard of sex, drugs and violence.

    Meanwhile, Adam McKay (“The Big Short”) and Billy Corben (“Cocaine Cowboys”) have the documentary  “God Forbid: The Sex Scandal That Brought Down a Dynasty” (Nov. 1), about the private life of Christian televangelist and former Liberty University president Jerry Falwell Jr. and his very public downfall.

    See: Here’s everything new on Hulu in November 2022 — and what’s leaving

    There are also the final two episodes of “Atlanta” (series finale Nov. 10), whose fourth season has returned to brilliance after an underwhelming Season 3 over the summer, and new episodes every week of ABC’s “Abbott Elementary.”

    Who’s Hulu for? TV lovers. There’s a deep library for those who want older TV series and next-day streaming of many current network and cable shows.

    Play, pause or stop? Stop. While you won’t regret paying for Hulu if you already do, there’s not a lot to lure new subscribers this month.

    Apple TV+ ($6.99 a month)

    Apple TV+ is too inconsistent to be worth the $2-a-month price hike that was just announced, so it’s best to strategically plan when to stream — wait until a good series or two are completed, for example, and binge them all in a month, then cancel. Repeat as needed.

    And it actually is a decent month for Apple. Its second-best comedy, “Mythic Quest” Nov. 11), returns for its third season, with Ian (Rob McElhenny) and Poppy (Charlotte Nicdao) gearing up for war against their old videogame company. With a perfect blend of humor and heart, it’s one of the best workplace comedies on TV.

    Meanwhile, Season 2 of “The Mosquito Coast” (Nov. 4) finds the fugitive Fox family finally hiding out in Central America, after a tedious premise-pilot of a first season that wasted good actors (Justin Theroux and Melissa George) and beautiful cinematography with nonsensical plot twists, while the action series “Echo 3” (Nov. 23) stars Luke Evans and Michiel Huisman as former soldiers trying to rescue a kidnapped scientist in the jungles of South America.

    Apple
    AAPL,
    +7.56%
    also has a pair of high-profile original movies: “Causeway” (Nov. 3), starring Jennifer Lawrence as a former soldier struggling to adjust to civilian life in New Orleans, co-starring Brian Tyree Henry, and “Spirited” (Nov. 18), a musical twist on “A Christmas Carol” told from the ghosts’ point of view, starring Ryan Reynolds and Will Ferrell.

    Who’s Apple TV+ for? It offers a little something for everyone, but not necessarily enough for anyone — although it’s getting there.

    Play, pause or stop? Stop. There’s just not enough to justify a month-to-month subscription. December is a better bet, with “Mythic Quest” and a new season of “Slow Horses” running concurrently.

    Peacock (free basic level, Premium for $4.99 a month with ads, or $9.99 a month with no ads)

    The World Cup from Qatar (Nov. 20-Dec. 18) will be broadcast on Fox and FS1, so cord-cutters are out of luck, unless you subscribe to a live-streaming service like Hulu Live or YouTube TV. However, Peacock will stream every match in Spanish, which could be a decent Plan B for soccer fans.

    And that “it’ll-do-but-it’s-not-exactly-what-I’m-looking-for” description is the running theme for Peacock. November will bring a handful of originals that are unlikely to move the needle, subscriber-wise: There’s the musical-comedy spinoff series “Pitch Perfect: Bumper in Berlin” (Nov. 23), starring Adam Devine; “The Calling” (Nov. 10), a crime drama about a religious cop, from David E. Kelley and Barry Levinson; the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade (Nov. 24); and the streaming debut of Jordan Poole’s sci-fi/horror hit “Nope” (Nov. 18).

    Sports-wise, Peacock has the National Dog Show (hey, it’s a competition!) on Nov. 24, NFL Sunday Night Football every weekend, a full slate of English Premier League matches through Nov. 13, and a ton of golf and winter sports.

    Who’s Peacock for? If you have a Comcast 
    CMCSA,
    -0.06%
     or Cox cable subscription, you likely have free access to the Premium tier (with ads) — though reportedly not for much longer. The free tier is almost worthless, but the recent addition of next-day streaming of NBC and Bravo shows (like “Saturday Night Live” and “Real Housewives”) bolsters the case for paying for a subscription. Still, Peacock is still not really necessary unless you need it for sports.

    Play, pause or stop? Stop. There’s not a lot that’s particularly enticing right now, even on the sports side.

    Discovery+ ($4.99 a month with ads, or $6.99 with no ads)

    More of the same in November for Discovery+, which is a feature, not a bug. Highlights include the vegan cook-and-chat show “Mary McCartney Serves It Up” (Nov. 1); “Tut’s Lost City Revealed” (Nov. 3), about a 3,000-year-old Egyptian city recently discovered by archaeologists; “Vardy vs Rooney: The Wagatha Trial” (Nov. 19), the inside story of the tabloid-fodder “Wagatha” scandal between the wives of English soccer stars; and Season 2 of the excellent CNN food series “Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy” (Nov. 30). Full disclosure: There are also a handful of sappy holiday movies guest-starring some HGTV and Food Network stars, but they look terrible and I expect better from you, a discerning reader/viewer.

    Who’s Discovery+ for? Cord-cutters who miss their unscripted TV or who are really, really into “90 Day Fiancé.”

    Play, pause or stop?  Stop. Discovery+ is still fantastic for background TV, but it’s not worth the cost. Still, it should add value when the reconfigured Warner Bros. Discovery 
    WBD,
    +3.68%
      combines it with HBO Max next summer.

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  • Netflix Adds a Better-Than-Expected 2.4 Million Subscribers

    Netflix Adds a Better-Than-Expected 2.4 Million Subscribers

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    Netflix


    shares were trading sharply higher after the streaming giant posted better-than-expected subscriber growth for the third quarter.

    The company added 2.41 million net new subscribers in the quarter, beating its own forecast of 1 million additions. Netflix (ticker: NFLX) said it expects to add another 4.5 million subscribers in the December quarter.

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  • Netflix snaps streak of subscriber declines and beats on earnings, stock jumps 15%

    Netflix snaps streak of subscriber declines and beats on earnings, stock jumps 15%

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    Netflix Inc. added more than 2 million subscribers in the third quarter after stumbling into 2022 with two consecutive quarterly declines, a rebound that sent shares more than 15% higher in after-hours trading Tuesday.

    Netflix 
    NFLX,
    -1.73%
    reported a net gain of 2.41 million subscribers in the third quarter, while analysts on average were forecasting 1.1 million net additions, according to FactSet. That follows a decline of roughly 200,000 subscribers in the first quarter and nearly a million in the second quarter, which has led the company to plan massive changes, including a cheaper, ad-supported streaming tier set to arrive in the fourth quarter.

    In a letter to shareholders, Netflix executives said they expect 4.5 million new subscribers to join in the fourth quarter, with revenue forecast to grow to $7.78 billion from $7.71 billion a year ago. Analysts on average were estimating revenue of $7.97 billion and a net subscriber gain of 4 million for the fourth quarter, according to FactSet.

    “After a challenging first half, we believe we’re on a path to reaccelerate growth,” executives wrote in the letter.

    The news sent Netflix shares up about 15% in after-hours trading following the release of the results, after closing with a 1.7% drop at $240.86. The stretch of subscriber declines has filleted Netflix shares, which have swooned 60% so far this year while the broader S&P 500 index
    SPX,
    +1.14%
    has declined 22.8%.

    The streaming-video giant’s downturn after a pandemic-boosted surge has only intensified pressure from rival streaming services at Walt Disney Co. 
    DIS,
    +1.18%    ,
     Apple Inc. 
    AAPL,
    +0.94%    ,
    Amazon.com Inc. 
    AMZN,
    +2.26%    ,
    Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. 
    WBD,
    +4.55%    ,
    Comcast Corp. 
    CMCSA,
    -0.23%
    and Paramount Global 
    PARA,
    +1.56%    .

    That didn’t stop Netflix executives from taking a pot shot at streaming rivals over profitability. “Our competitors are investing heavily to drive subscribers and engagement, but building a large, successful streaming business is hard — we estimate they are all losing money, with combined 2022 operating losses well over $10 billion, vs. Netflix’s $5 to $6 billion annual operating profit,” Netflix executives said in the shareholder letter.

    A dramatic shift in the video-streaming climate, one in which Disney surpassed Netflix as market leader in July, has prompted a radical makeover at Netflix. Last week, the company announced its long-awaited advertising-supported tier, which debuts Nov. 3 in the U.S. for $6.99 a month. Another 11 countries, including Canada and Mexico, will get the service by Nov. 10. The company has also vowed a crackdown on shared accounts, and is pushing forward on gaming.

    The advertising-supported tier directly acknowledges competition and the necessity of Netflix “adapting to the streaming landscape’s new normal,” Insider Intelligence analyst Ross Benes said in a note late Tuesday.

    For more: Netflix lost its streaming crown to Disney. Here’s how execs expect to win it back.

    Netflix announced third-quarter earnings of $1.4 billion, or $3.10 a share, down from $3.16 a share a year ago. Netflix revenue improved to $7.93 billion in the quarter from $7.48 billion in the same period a year ago, but missed diminished expectations. Analysts polled by FactSet expected earnings of $2.14 a share on sales of $7.84 billion, estimates that had dipped in recent days.

    Tuesday’s results follow some serious self-reflection among Netflix executives on how to stanch a decline in visits among subscribers that has led to cancellations. Co-CEO Reed Hastings has consulted with staff to find ways to make subscribers visit the platform more frequently, according to reports by The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg News.

    One such strategy is cracking down on multiple users sharing the same account. In the shareholder letter, Netflix said it has “landed on a thoughtful approach to monetize account sharing and we’ll begin rolling this out more broadly starting in early 2023.”

    “After listening to consumer feedback, we are going to offer the ability for borrowers to transfer their Netflix profile into their own account, and for sharers to manage their devices more easily and to create sub-accounts (‘extra member’), if they want to pay for family or friends,” the letter said. “In countries with our lower-priced ad-supported plan, we expect the profile transfer option for borrowers to be especially popular.”

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