Evercore ISI hikes Netflix price target, says stock can march to new heights thanks to live events

CNBC

30-05-2025

Netflix can continue to march higher even as the stock already trades at record levels, according to Evercore ISI. Analyst Mark Mahaney maintained his outperform rating on the streaming giant and raised his price target by $200 to $1,350, which suggests nearly 14% potential upside ahead. Shares hit an all-time high this week, bringing their year-to-date gains to nearly 32%. Mahaney's bullish sentiment on Netflix comes after Evercore ISI ran its 54th quarterly U.S. survey and 15th annual UK survey, which received roughly 1,300 respondents in each market. From the survey results, Mahaney observed live events to be a key driver for Netflix. A record high of 53% of U.S. respondents said they have watched live events on Netflix, and 50% said they would be likelier to keep their subscription if more live events were included. "Increasing adoption and attraction of Live Events is providing early evidence of 'Bundle Power,'" Mahaney wrote in a Thursday note to clients. "Remember how much you paid for your cable bundle? We don't either, but we guarantee it was a lot more than the $24.99 Netflix currently offers for its Premium Plan. And as Netflix continues to enlarge its content offering – adding in Live Events for e.g. – its ability to raise prices will increase." NFLX 1Y mountain Netflix stock performance. Mahaney added that the survey results pointed to greater satisfaction levels from Netflix subscribers, and flat viewing trends for the second quarter while other streaming peers saw modest decline. Netflix was also a favorite for its content among the respondents. It ranked the best in terms of content quality according to more than 40% of U.S. respondents and 67% of UK respondents, keeping its competitive leadership over Amazon Prime Video and Disney's Hulu, Mahaney noted. Netflix's bet on live events has so far paid off. The company added a record 19 million subscribers globally in the fourth quarter, aided by its streaming of a highly-anticipated boxing match between Jake Paul and Mike Tyson —which became the most-streamed sporting event in history — as well as two NFL games on Christmas Day. Netflix boasted strong revenue growth during the first quarter of 2025, even after hiking its subscription prices for its three plans. The company is targeting a $1 trillion market capitalization and doubling its revenue by 2030. Evercore ISI is one of several Wall Street firms that remain bullish on the stock. Of the 55 analysts covering Netflix, 37 rate it a strong buy or buy, according to LSEG.