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Netflix Stock Has Fallen After 5 Straight Reports: Will Q3 Break the Streak?

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Netflix is set to report Q3 earnings amid significant internal upheaval, including 1,000 layoffs and leadership changes. Wall Street expects $82 cents EPS and $12.88B revenue, though estimates have been revised downward from previous quarters. The stock has fallen for five consecutive reports, currently trading around $69.59. Analysts have lowered price targets but largely maintain positive ratings, with key focus areas being ad revenue growth and the impact of cost-cutting measures on future performance.

Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) will report third-quarter results after the closing bell Tuesday, and the numbers arrive at an awkward time. Over the past week, the streaming company announced roughly 1,000 job cuts, named a new content chief and parted ways with Dan Lin, the head of its film division.

Investors are bracing. Shares fell 1.3% to $69.59 Monday afternoon, according to Benzinga Pro, and the stock has struggled after its last five earnings reports. 

  • NFLX stock is moving ahead of earnings. See the chart and price action here. 

What Wall Street Expects

Analysts expect earnings of 82 cents per share on revenue of $12.88 billion, according to Benzinga Pro. The revenue estimate sits just above the company’s own forecast of $12.86 billion, which implied 12% annual growth.

Expectations have come down. Ahead of the July report, the Street modeled $13.01 billion in third-quarter revenue and EPS of 84 cents. 

The second-quarter print set the tone. Revenue rose 13% to $12.56 billion, slightly below the $12.59 billion consensus, while EPS of 80 cents edged past the 79-cent estimate. Netflix also narrowed its full-year revenue outlook to $51 billion to $51.4 billion and forecast more than $3 billion in 2026 ad revenue.

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A Week of Upheaval

Co-CEOs Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters told staff last week that the company would cut about 1,000 jobs, roughly 6% of its workforce. 

Most of the cuts affect product, technology, legal, and human resources teams, according to an internal memo Reuters citedkl. The executives wrote Netflix must be “disciplined about where we prioritize our people and resources,” and said the company remains on track for its full-year forecast.

Leadership changes came next. Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria is leaving after nearly 10 years, and industry veteran Peter Rice will replace her. Lin is also out after nearly three years running the division. No replacement for Lin has been named, though former Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group executives Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy have surfaced as possible candidates. 

The reset follows months of headlines about soft engagement, a stalled share price and a lost bid for Warner Bros.

What to Watch

Netflix’s outlook could matter more than the quarter. In July, the company edged past profit estimates, but its third-quarter forecast of $12.86 billion in revenue and 82 cents in EPS fell short of Street expectations, and shares fell, CNBC reported.

Engagement is the other pressure point. View hours rose 2% in the first half of 2026. 

Barclays analyst Kannan Venkateshwar wrote last week many viewers still treat Netflix as a home for library content, even though Originals make up more than 60% of its titles, CNBC reported. In his view, the world around Netflix has changed faster than the company.

Advertising is a possible bright spot. Netflix expects more than $3 billion in ad revenue this year, and an update on the ad business’s pace will draw attention. So will any detail on how the job cuts affect costs.

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Analysts Trim Targets, Keep Ratings

Several analysts lowered price targets in the days before the report, though most held positive ratings, Benzinga reported. Every target below sits above Friday’s close.

FirmAnalystRatingPrice targetDate
BMO CapitalBrian PitzOutperform$125 (lowered from $135)Oct. 16
WedbushAlicia ReeseOutperform$90 (lowered from $105)Oct. 16
RosenblattBarton CrockettNeutral$75Oct. 16
JefferiesJohn ColantuoniBuy (assumed)$85Oct. 15
KeyBancJustin PattersonOverweight$85 (lowered from $92)Oct. 13

NFLX Stock Price Activity: Netflix stock was down 0.99% at $69.83 at the time of publication Monday, according to Benzinga Pro.

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Image: Shutterstock

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