Netflix Shares Close 5.31% Lower After Fourth-Quarter Forecast Misses

Netflix (NFLX) shares closed 5.31% lower at $65.04 Wednesday, Oct. 21, after the company reported quarterly results and forecast fourth-quarter revenue and earnings below analyst estimates.

Shares finished the regular session at 4 p.m. ET (20:00 UTC).

Netflix reported third-quarter revenue of $12.874 billion, an 11.8% increase from a year earlier. Net income totaled $3.664 billion, and diluted earnings were $0.87 per share, above the $0.82 analyst consensus. Revenue matched the $12.874 billion consensus. Operating margin rose to 34.6% from 28.2% in the third quarter of 2025.

For the fourth quarter, Netflix projected revenue of $13.442 billion, up 11.5% year over year, and diluted earnings of $0.67 per share. Analyst consensus was $13.525 billion in revenue and $0.73 per share in earnings. The company also projected a fourth-quarter operating margin of 26%.

The revenue forecast extends a slowdown in year-over-year growth across 2026. Growth was 16.2% in the first quarter and 13.4% in the second, before reaching 11.8% in the third. Netflix continued to project full-year 2026 revenue of $51.1 billion, up 13%, and an operating margin of 31.5%.

Netflix lowered its 2026 advertising revenue outlook to about $2.7 billion from roughly $3 billion. The company tied the reduction to delays in rolling out some advertising features. Co-CEO Greg Peters said the ad business was “a bit behind our aggressive target for the year.”