Netflix Surges Up to 9.3% as Onling Viewing Surpasses Analyst’s Estimate
Netflix Inc. (NFLX), owner of the streaming and DVD-by-mail service, jumped as much as 9.3 percent after reporting online viewing that surpassed an analyst’s estimate.
Netflix, based in Los Gatos, California, rose 7.1 percent to $77.34 at 2:15 p.m. New York time in Nasdaq Stock Market trading, after reaching $78.97 earlier. The shares dropped 61 percent last year (NFLX).
Users of the company’s online movie and TV-streaming service watched more than 2 billion hours of content in the last three months of 2011, the company said today in a statement.
The number exceeded the 1.2 billion-hour estimate of Richard Greenfield, an analyst with BTIG Research. Netflix Chief Executive Officer Reed Hastings in December said fourth-quarter streaming hours would be “well over” 1 billion, according to Greenfield.
“It now appears our interpretation was far too conservative,” Greenfield wrote in a blog post.
He estimates Netflix would be the 15th most-watched U.S. TV network when compared to traditional cable and broadcast channels.
The $7.99-a-month service is eating into traditional television-viewing, Greenfield said.
To contact the reporter on this story: Cliff Edwards in San Francisco at cedwards28@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Anthony Palazzo at apalazzo@bloomberg.net
Netflix Shares Surge as Online Viewing Surpasses Estimate
Scott Eells/Bloomberg
The Netflix Inc. app is displayed for a photograph on a mobile device in New York.
The Netflix Inc. app is displayed for a photograph on a mobile device in New York. Photographer: Scott Eells/Bloomberg
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