For years, Netflix prime brass would inform traders they had been builders not consumers. Now, that sentiment towards development could also be altering.
On Thursday Netflix reported its quarterly earnings. Usually, Netflix’s earnings calls are targeted on metrics like engagement, content material spending, worth hikes and membership. Whereas these components had been nonetheless current on Thursday’s name, analysts had been additionally questioning Netflix’s merger and acquisition aspirations following the Warner Bros. Discovery sale course of.
Late final yr, Netflix emerged as a bidder for WBD, stunning many within the trade and market. Much more gorgeous was an announcement in December that Netflix had reached a deal to accumulate WBD’s movie studio and streaming property in a $72 billion deal.
Whereas the transaction initially raised eyebrows, it is now opened the door to questions from media onlookers and insiders about whether or not the corporate must pursue different offers as streaming turns into extra aggressive.
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos mentioned Thursday that questions additionally arose each internally and externally in regards to the firm’s capacity to do such a megadeal.
“What we did be taught, although, was that our groups had been greater than as much as the duty,” mentioned Sarandos. “We have discovered a lot about deal execution, about early integration.”
Netflix had mentioned its reasoning was easy for the pivot towards a giant acquisition. Regardless of being the biggest streaming service by far in the case of subscribers — 325 million paid world members reported in January — it needed to deepen its bench of franchises and mental property, and get extra squarely within the film studio enterprise.
Paramount Skydance in the end upended the deal in February with a superior bid, and Netflix walked away (gathering its $2.8 billion breakup payment briefly order).
“However principally, we actually constructed our M&A muscle,” Sarandos mentioned. “And crucial good thing about this whole train, although, was that we examined our funding self-discipline.”
‘M&A muscle’
Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos arrives on the White Home in Washington, Feb. 26, 2026.
Andrew Leyden | Getty Photos
Sarandos’ newfound openness to M&A has left some questioning whether or not the streaming large could possibly be looking out for brand new targets.
In spite of everything, its library of mental property and its relationship to the film studio enterprise are nonetheless proper the place they had been earlier than it took on the WBD deal.
Though Wall Road was clearly not a fan of Netflix’s proposed acquisition of WBD — shares fell 15% between the announcement of the deal and the day it fell aside, and have since risen about 26% — the media panorama can be undeniably totally different if Paramount’s takeover is authorized.
Paramount is in search of to purchase the whole thing of WBD’s enterprise — cable TV networks, movie studio, streaming and all. That will create a behemoth of a competitor for Netflix and its media friends on numerous fronts.
“The way in which the WBD playing cards fell issues loads. A possible mixture of Paramount+ and HBO Max adjustments the streaming panorama in methods Netflix hasn’t actually needed to deal with earlier than,” mentioned Mike Proulx, vice chairman and analysis director at Forrester, previous to Netflix’s earnings launch.
“I simply wish to remind you that we mentioned this from the start that the WB deal was a pleasant to have, not a must have. We’re very assured within the core enterprise,” Sarandos mentioned Thursday. He added that Netflix considered its greatest threat going into the deal course of as dropping concentrate on its core enterprise.
“As you possibly can see from our Q1 outcomes, we didn’t lose focus,” he mentioned.
Nonetheless, Netflix’s earnings report, and significantly its forward-looking steering, appeared to disappoint traders.
The corporate’s inventory dropped roughly 10% in prolonged buying and selling after the streamer maintained full-year steering regardless of a first-quarter income beat and the termination of the WBD deal.
Netflix inventory sinks after Q1 earnings report.
“The larger shock this quarter was the unchanged full-year margin steering regardless of strolling away from the Warner Bros. deal and associated M&A prices,” mentioned analyst Robert Fishman of MoffettNathanson in a analysis be aware Friday.
Netflix, for its half, did not spend an excessive amount of time on M&A through the earnings name, as a substitute specializing in its extra acquainted speaking factors like consumer engagement, a rising promoting enterprise, and spending on content material that holds onto members (and helps justify worth hikes).
The return to Netflix’s typical narrative seemed to be welcome.
“Put up WBD, the corporate might return to its relentless concentrate on rising income and earnings by leveraging its world subscriber scale,” mentioned Fishman in Friday’s be aware. He added that Netflix administration “emphasised the success of its current worth will increase and famous that retention was robust,” in addition to that it stays on monitor to double advert income this yr.
Nonetheless, Proulx of Forrester mentioned in a be aware after the earnings name that whereas Netflix was again to being “squarely targeted on executing its tried‑and‑true playbook,” questions nonetheless remained.
“None of that adjustments the fact that the streaming market is extra aggressive than it was a yr in the past,” Proulx mentioned. “Pricing energy has to be earned quarter by quarter, and holding engagement as costs rise stays the central problem throughout the streaming market. Netflix is betting that regular execution on its core enterprise wins in a extra crowded, consolidating market.”