Shares of Netflix climbed 2.1% in mid-day trading on Tuesday after Wolfe Research upgraded its price target to $95 from $84, citing improving viewer engagement and potential new revenue streams.
The upgrade follows a soft second-quarter subscriber addition of roughly 900,000, which Wolfe attributed to the timing of content releases rather than a decline in demand. Analyst Peter Supino noted that the stock is "primed to move higher" as engagement improves, pointing to a stronger upcoming content slate and growing contributions from live programming.
Separately, a report suggested Netflix is exploring a model to become a hub for users to purchase and manage subscriptions to rival streaming services, drawing comparisons to aggregator platforms used by Amazon and Apple. This could generate transaction revenue, increase app usage, and solidify Netflix's position as a primary entry point for streaming content.
Netflix's shares have recovered about 25% from their 52-week low of $65.08, aided by a broader market rebound and billionaire investor Bill Ackman's mid-August disclosure of a new stake in the company. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.5% and the S&P 500 added 0.2% during the session.
The stock reached a session high of $81.74, still below Wolfe's new target but reflecting a partial rebound from its prior-year decline, during which it shed roughly a third of its value.
