Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) shares are climbing Monday. Evercore ISI raised its price target on the stock, citing improving subscriber trends in the U.S. and Japan. Here’s what you need to know.
- Netflix shares are climbing with conviction. Why are NFLX shares rallying?
Evercore ISI Raises Netflix Price Target to $110
Evercore ISI analyst Mark Mahaney maintained an Outperform rating on Netflix and raised the price target to $110 from $100. Mahaney attributed the higher target to shifting his valuation model out to 2028, where he now applies a 25 times multiple to his projected earnings for that year, combined with fresh survey findings out of the U.S. and Japan that he said showed Netflix’s standing in both markets improving, in some cases modestly and in others by a wider margin.
The data behind that view showed U.S. subscriber penetration climbing to 63%, a level not seen in several years, while Japan’s penetration figure hit an all-time high of 22%. Willingness to stay subscribed also firmed up in Japan, where 58% of those surveyed said they were unlikely or entirely unwilling to cancel, the best reading Mahaney’s survey has recorded. Satisfaction scores out of Japan held steady at a solid 67%.
Mahaney pointed to the ad-supported Standard plan as doing double duty for Netflix, both bringing in new subscribers and keeping would-be cancelers on the platform. In Japan, two-thirds of people who signed up for the ad tier were either past subscribers coming back or brand-new customers, while in the U.S., more than a third of subscribers who said they were thinking about canceling indicated they’d downgrade to the ad plan rather than walk away entirely.
Additional commentary framed suggested Netflix’s underlying strength may be running ahead of what the broader market currently appreciates. That version credited live programming as a meaningful subscriber draw, pointing specifically to the World Baseball Classic, with nearly half of new Japanese subscribers saying they joined specifically to watch it stream.
NFLX Shares Are Rising
NFLX Price Action: Netflix shares were up 4.03% at $80.52 at the time of publication on Monday, according to Benzinga Pro.
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