Benzinga - by Chris Katje, Benzinga Staff Writer.
Streaming giant Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) reported first-quarter financial results after market close Thursday.
Here are the key highlights.
What Happened: Netflix reported first quarter revenue of $9.37 billion, which was up 14.8% year-over-year. The revenue beat a Street consensus estimate of $9.275 billion, according to data from Benzinga Pro.
The company reported earnings per share of $5.28 for the quarter, which beat a Street consensus estimate of $4.51.
Netflix added 9.33 million paid net new subscribers in the first quarter to bring the company to a total of 269.60 million. The subscriber growth was up 16.0% year-over-year.
Revenue, earnings per share and net additions all came in ahead of company guidance as well.
Average revenue per member was up 1% year-over-year in the first quarter.
Operating income for the company was $2.6 billion, up 54% year-over-year.
The company said it made progress on its ad-supported plan in the first quarter, saying its ads membership was up 65% quarter-over-quarter. Netflix reported that 40% of all signups for the ad-supported plan came from ads plans.
Highlighted content for the first quarter included "Griselda," "3 Body Problem," "Avatar: the Last Airbender," "Love is Blind Season 6," "American Nightmare" and "Dave Chappelle: The Dreamer."
Netflix said with an average of more than two people per household subscribed on each Netflix plan, the company has an audience of over half a billion people.
"No entertainment company has ever programmed at this scale and with this ambition before," the company said.
Related Link: Netflix Q1 Earnings Preview: Subscriber Growth, Potential Price Increase, Ad-Tier Plan And More On What Wall Street Expects
What's Next: Netflix said it has room to grow and add value with members, which includes growth through live events in comedy, sports, competition shows and music. The company highlighted an upcoming boxing match between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul and its upcoming partnership with WWE.
The company is guiding for second quarter revenue of $9.49 billion and earnings per share of $4.68.
Netflix no longer provides guidance for net paid subscriber additions and said starting with the first quarter of fiscal 2025 it will stop reporting quarterly membership figures and average revenue per member.
"We have built a hard to replicate combination of a strong slate, superior recommendations, broad reach and intense fandom, which drives healthy engagement on Netflix," the company said.
The company said it will look to improve the variety and quality of entertainment going forward.
NFLX Price Action: Netflix shares are down 2% to $599.33 in after-hours trading Thursday, versus a 52-week trading range of $315.62 to $639.00.
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Photo courtesy of Netflix.
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