Netflix ( NFLX ) reported fourth-quarter earnings after the bell on Tuesday that showed better-than-expected results, but said it will increase its rollout of new content in the coming year and halt its share repurchase program because of its pending acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery ( WBD ).
The streaming giant reported revenue of $12.05 billion, more than Wall Street estimates for $11.96 billion, per Bloomberg consensus data, which matched the company’s own forecast. In the fourth quarter of last year, the company posted revenue of $10.25 billion.
Earnings per share came in slightly higher than expected at $0.56, versus the Street’s forecast of $0.55. That’s against Netflix’s forecast expectation of $5.45, or $0.55 after the stock’s 10-for-1 split in mid-November.
The company also revealed that it now has more than 325 million members worldwide.
Full-year revenue came in at a higher-than-expected $45.2 billion, compared to Wall Street’s forecast of $45.1 billion, and representing 16% growth for the year. Netflix said Tuesday that its revenue in 2026 is expected to fall in a range of $50.7 billion-$51.7 billion, which represents growth of 12%-14%.
For the first quarter, Netflix is forecasting 15.3% growth in revenue to $12.16 billion and adjusted earnings of $0.76. This is more than what Wall Street expected of $10.54 billion with adjusted earnings of $0.66.
Its slower growth rate indicates that the company will seek to increase its launch of its own content in the coming year, and uncertainty about the Warner Bros. deal weighed on the stock, which fell up to 5% in after-hours trading on Tuesday.
In its letter to shareholders, Netflix said engagement in the second half of the year was driven by a 9% increase in viewing of its original content, but offset by a decline in engagement in its non-branded content.
“This decrease primarily reflected a lower volume of licensed content and second runs in most regions after an elevated licensing period during 2023-2024 as a result of the WGA strike, which temporarily shut down new production,” the company said in its letter.
After the report, Frank Albarella, KPMG US Sector Leader of Media & Telecommunications told Yahoo Finance, “As catalogs grow, costs rise, live formats expand, and experiences and acquisitions reshape expectations. Breadth is no longer a simple advantage; it’s a more complex responsibility. The real work now is transforming that breadth into something coherent, adaptable enough to define the next industry, and resilient.”