Netflix Lowers Targets and Signals Weakening Viewing Growth Despite Third-Quarter Earnings Beat

Netflix shares fell 4% to $63.54 after lowering full-year forecasts and citing plateauing domestic viewing hours, overshadowing a third-quarter earnings beat. The company reduced its 2026 advertising revenue target to $2.7 billion from $3.0 billion and trimmed free cash flow guidance to $12 billion from $12.5 billion. Full-year revenue is now projected at $51.1 billion, coming in at the lower end of management expectations and below the $51.2 billion consensus. For the third quarter, Netflix posted GAAP EPS of $0.87, topping expectations of $0.82, while revenue reached approximately $12.9 billion.