Netflix shares are up 12% after the company said paid subscribers rose 8.5 million in the holiday quarter as cold weather and new blockages set in.
- Netflix said on Tuesday that it had added 8.5 million new subscribers in the holiday quarter
- Originals such as Bridgerton and The Queen’s Gambit helped fuel growth
- The bounce came as many took refuge under lockdown in colder weather
- Netflix shares rose to 12% on Tuesday in trading after the program
Netflix shares rose on Tuesday after the streaming company reported an increase in the number of new subscribers for the holiday quarter, exceeding Wall Street estimates.
The company said it added 8.51 million paid subscribers in the December 31 quarter, exceeding analysts’ estimates of 6.1 million, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.
It marked a major recovery in subscriber growth after a slow third quarter, in which Netflix added only 2.2 million paid users.
In the fourth quarter, Netflix originals, such as Bridgerton and The Queen’s Gambit, helped the service attract more viewers, many of whom took refuge at home due to new COVID-19 restrictions and as winter descended.
Netflix acknowledged in a letter to shareholders that it faces stiff competition and said it will continue to sell money in originals such as “Bridgerton” (above).
The increase in subscribers every year is seen in this chart released by Netflix on Tuesday
Netflix shares rose to 12% on Tuesday after trading after the program
Shares of Netflix rose 12 percent in trading after the program on Tuesday, when the quarterly results were announced.
It marked the latest turn in “Streaming Wars,” with Netflix acknowledging in a letter to shareholders that it faces fierce competition from HBO Max, Disney + and others.
“The growing growth of streaming entertainment has led old competitors such as Disney, WarnerMedia and Discovery to compete with us in new ways that we have been waiting for for many years,” the letter said.
“This is partly why we have moved so fast to grow and further consolidate our original content library across a wide range of genres and nations.”
Netflix now has 203 million paid subscribers worldwide, compared to Disney + at 86.8 million paid subscribers worldwide.
In the fourth quarter, Netflix originals such as “The Queen’s Gambit” (above) helped the service attract more viewers to their homes.
HBO Max reports 38 million “activations” in the US, but that number includes 12.7 million who already pay for the content through their cable package.
Netflix reported fourth-quarter revenue of $ 6.64 billion on Tuesday, exceeding expectations.
Earnings per share were $ 1.19, lower than the $ 1.39 analysts had expected.
Netflix has said it will no longer need to raise external funding for day-to-day operations and will even explore returning cash to shareholders by repurchasing shares.
The last time Netflix watched the ransom was in 2011, when it pivoted from DVDs to mail to streaming.