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Netflix beats on Q1 revenue, issues downbeat Q2 forecast, and says Hastings will leave in June

It’s the streamer’s first earnings report since backing out of the Warner Bros. bidding war in February.

4/16/26 4:10PM

Streaming giant Netflix reported results for its first quarter after markets closed on Thursday. Its shares fell 9% after-hours.

The company reported:

Earnings of $1.23 per share, which included the $2.8 billion termination fee related to the Warner Bros. Discovery deal. Wall Street analysts polled by FactSet had expected $0.76, but that may not be comparable because of the fee.
Revenue of $12.25 billion, compared to the $12.18 billion consensus.

Netflix also said that cofounder Reed Hastings will exit the board in June in order to “focus on his philanthropy and other pursuits.” Hastings has been with the company since 1997 and stepped back from CEO duties in 2023.

Looking ahead to the second quarter, Netflix said it expects revenue growth of 13%, slightly less than what Wall Street expects, and diluted earnings of $0.78 per share, below the analyst consensus of $0.84 per share. Netflix reaffirmed its earlier annual revenue guidance of between $50.7 billion and $51.7 billion.

Thursday’s earnings report marks Netflix’s first since it backed out of the bidding war for Warner Bros. Discovery in late February, allowing Paramount to step in. Wall Street has viewed Netflix’s choice to bail as a win, and the stock is up more than 25% since, climbing back to its early December levels (before it first announced the acquisition agreement).

With the decision to walk away, Netflix received a $2.8 billion breakup fee — one of the biggest in the history of media mergers — paid out by Paramount.

What exactly Netflix will do with that cash is still up in the air. Last month, the streamer acquired the Ben Affleck-founded AI company InterPositive for as much as $600 million (if the tool meets certain performance targets). In early April, it launched a gaming app for young children. At the same time, Netflix has been spending less on original films: just 23 were released on the streamer in Q1, the lowest output since 2017.

Netflix further boosted its revenue line last month, when it hiked the price of its subscription tiers for the fourth time in four years.

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SpaceX gets a wave of bullish ratings from Wall Street analysts

SpaceX received more than a dozen positive analyst calls on Tuesday — including from major Wall Street banks — as they initiate coverage on Elon Musk’s space and AI company.

SpaceX went public on June 12 at a $2.2 trillion valuation, the largest debut in history. While the company hasn’t yet posted a profit, it seems to have convinced Wall Street that it will get there and grow its valuation on the way.

Of the at least 17 analysts that gave a rating on Tuesday, all but one gave it a “buy” or “outperform” rating. MoffettNathanson was "neutral."

The ratings come as SpaceX joined the Nasdaq 100 index, a benchmark tech-heavy basket of companies that underpins millions of portfolios. The inclusion adds built-in demand for the stock from index funds and ETFs.

Still, SpaceX fell more than 5% on Tuesday amid a broader sell-off, and is currently effectively flat from its opening price of $150 a share.

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Nike sinks to lowest level since 2014 after warning of “challenged” sales environment in Q4 report

Did Nike do it?

Investors had a mixed reaction after the global sports apparel company reported its fourth quarter earnings on Tuesday after the bell. Shares initially rose 5% as Nike beat out Wall Street expectations amid a hefty tariff refund bonus. However, the stock then sank to its lowest level since August 2014 in postmarket trading.

Here are the Q4 numbers:

Revenue of $11.0 billion (estimate: $10.8 billion).
Adjusted earnings per share of $0.20 (estimate: $0.12).

Ahead of this report, Nike warned that results would be flattered by a one-time tariff refund (now estimated at roughly $0.52 per share for the bottom line). That gave the company an extra cushion in snapping its streak of seven quarters of year-over-year profit declines.

Over the past year, the company had been punished by tariffs on imported goods, stagnant consumer spending, and increasing competition from other footwear brands like New Balance, Adidas, and Hoka.

Outgoing CFO Matthew Friend deemed it an “increasingly challenging operating environment, where sell-through remains challenged.”

Netflix beats on Q1 revenue, issues downbeat Q2 forecast, and says Hastings will leave in June

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