Even amidst rapidly escalating competition in streaming, Netflix continues to stand out, posting yet another strong quarter.
The company said late Thursday it generated $11.08 billion in revenue in the second quarter, up 16% from the comparable period last year, and $3.13 billion in net income, up 46%. Both figures beat analyst expectations and extended the accelerating momentum shown by Netflix during the first quarter.
“We have a belief and expectation that the demand for not only entertainment, but for us specifically, will remain strong,” said Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters in an earnings call.
The results arrive as Netflix’s spot in the monthly Nielsen Gauge, which measures television usage across all platforms, has shown the company with a plateauing market share. Netflix garnered 8.3% of total U.S. TV viewing in June, nearly identical to its percentage a year ago. While the overall streaming landscape continues to grow and take share from traditional broadcast and cable TV, rivals such as YouTube and Roku are claiming much of that shift.
As was the case in the spring, Netflix remains viewed as a safe harbor for investors amid broader economic turbulence, with its tariff-resistant business model and fast-growing revenue. To that end, Netflix also raised its full-year revenue outlook from a prior range of $43.5 billion to $44.5 billion to a new one of $44.8 billion to $45.2 billion.
The company’s stock has grown by 44% this year and has nearly doubled in the last 12 months, reaching $1,274.17 per share. Investors, however, remain on the hunt for even greater growth, and sent Netflix shares down by about 1% in after-hours trading Thursday.
Sports Watching
Since the last earnings report for Netflix, the streamer learned its Christmas NFL doubleheader in 2025 will include the Cowboys visiting the Commanders, followed by the Lions facing the Vikings. With the twin bill of attractive, late-season matchups of division rivals, Netflix seeks to beat its 2024 Christmas viewership, which averaged more than 24 million viewers and set a league streaming record.
A September boxing match between Canelo Álvarez and Terence Crawford furthers an advancing live-event strategy for Netflix.
Netflix’s overall approach to sports rights, however, remains more measured than many of its competitors in both streaming and linear TV.
“Our live strategy and our sports strategy are unchanged,” said Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos. “We remain focused on ownable, big, breakthrough events, because our audiences really love them. Anything we chase in the events space or in the sports space has got to make economic sense as well. We bring a lot to the table, and the deals that we make have to reflect that.”
