Netflix announced on Thursday that it gained over 8 million subscribers in the second quarter, exceeding analyst expectations of 5 million, thanks to its crackdown on password sharing and popular titles like “Bridgerton,” “Baby Reindeer,” and “The Roast of Tom Brady.” Despite these gains, the company provided cautious guidance for the third quarter and indicated that its advertising business would not significantly drive revenue growth until at least 2026.
Following the earnings report, Netflix shares dropped but recovered to close up 1% in after-hours trading. The company’s stock has risen nearly one-third this year. Michael Ashley Schulman, chief investment officer at Running Point Capital, commented, “Netflix remains the most profitable streaming company, but with recent pullbacks in technology stocks, some investors might consider selling to take profits now, anticipating a potentially better entry point later.”
Netflix faces market saturation in the United States and has announced plans to discontinue regular reports on new subscriber additions starting next year. Meanwhile, investors closely watch its relatively new advertising business as a potential growth area. However, third-quarter subscriber additions are expected to be lower than the same period in 2023, which marked the beginning of the password-sharing crackdown.
Peter Naylor, Netflix’s vice president of ad sales, is also leaving the company. Jamie Lumley, an analyst at Third Bridge, noted that Netflix’s advertising efforts are still unproven in revenue generation, especially compared to Amazon’s significant impact in the ad market.
For the second quarter, Netflix reported diluted earnings per share of $4.88, beating consensus forecasts of $4.74. Revenue reached $9.56 billion, aligning with estimates. By the end of June, the total number of global Netflix subscribers had surpassed 277 million.
Although Netflix’s ad tier membership grew 34% from the previous quarter, the company did not specify the number of subscribers opting for this service. In a letter to investors, Netflix stated, “Our ad business is growing nicely and becoming a more significant part of our business, but building a business from scratch takes time. Given our substantial subscription revenue, we do not foresee advertising becoming a primary revenue driver in 2024 or 2025.”
Spencer Neumann, Netflix’s Chief Financial Officer, echoed this sentiment in a post-earnings video, describing the advertising business as growing well from a small base and potentially becoming a primary contributor by 2026.
Looking ahead, Netflix expects third-quarter revenue to grow by 14% yearly. The company also revealed plans to expand its video game initiative, including releasing a multiplayer game based on “Squid Game” alongside Season Two of the series and developing games related to “Emily in Paris” and “Selling Sunset” later this year.
