Netflix Rises While Markets Slide—Thanks in Part to Live Sports

Netflix is becoming so powerful, it’s blowing right past any economic turbulence from the tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump, with sports continuing to be a critical part of that growing might.

The streaming giant said late Thursday it generated $10.54 billion in revenue in the first quarter, up 12.5% from the comparable period last year, and $2.89 billion in net income, up 24%. Both figures surpassed analyst expectations, and even as this was the first quarter in Netflix’s long-held plan to stop regularly reporting subscriber figures, the growing business remained on full display. 

Netflix stock, meanwhile, has risen by about 6% in the last week, and by nearly 10% this year, countering larger market declines that have accelerated significantly since the Trump tariffs began earlier this month. That contrast continued in after-hours trading Thursday, as investors sent the company’s shares up another 5% to more than $1,020 per share. 

Analysts are increasingly pointing to Netflix as a defensive safe haven for investors and a company largely immune to any tariff impact, while the market drag has hit many other traditional sports broadcasters. 

“We take some comfort in the fact that entertainment historically has been pretty resilient in tougher economic times,” said Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters in an earnings call with analysts. “Netflix specifically also has been generally quite resilient, and we haven’t seen any major impacts during those tougher times.”

Sports Watching

Netflix, meanwhile, said its coverage of World Wrestling Entertainment’s Raw that began in January has been a top-10 hit for the company in 29 countries and has been a fixture among its most popular programming around the world each week since the debut. 

The company’s focus on live sports will expand with a boxing rematch in July between Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano. The initial bout between the two, an undercard to the Jake Paul–Mike Tyson fight in November, became what Netflix is calling the “most-watched professional women’s sports event in U.S. history.” That claim hasn’t been verified by an established third-party measurement agency. Nonetheless, the company’s emphasis on live events is still growing.

Next month, Netflix will learn which games it will have for the return of its Christmas Day National Football League doubleheader. That ongoing tie could be a forerunner to what some company executives see as a potentially larger relationship with the NFL. Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos recently appeared at the league’s annual meeting in Florida. 

Sarandos declined to comment specifically on an analyst question about a quartet of major sports rights currently on the market that includes Major League Baseball, the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Formula One, and WWE. He did, however, say the company’s strategy to focus on “big, breakthrough events” remains intact, and the company’s advertising revenue is slated to roughly double in 2025.

“We’re very pleased with the progress so far and are excited about the future for live, both sports and non-sports,” Sarandos said.