Netflix: Fine, I’ll Bite. Maybe.

So, Netflix. Down, down, down. Everyone’s acting surprised. Like a streaming service… gets watched. And then sometimes, they don’t add exactly what you want. It’s infuriating. And now the stock’s down 37%? Honestly, it’s almost… predictable. I mean, you give people options, they’ll complain about the ones they don’t get. It’s human nature. As of today, it’s off 11% for the year. Eleven percent! Like someone misplaced a decimal point. And everyone’s panicking.

They had a quarter, apparently. “Solid growth,” they call it. What does that even mean? 325 million subscribers. Okay, fine. A lot of people watching things. But is anyone actually enjoying what they’re watching? That’s the real question. And this Stranger Things thing… 120 million viewers. All staring at screens. It’s a little unsettling, if you ask me. Like a mass hypnosis event. And the ad revenue is up, 2.5 times. Great. More commercials. Exactly what we needed. They’re making money off our misery. It’s brilliant, really. In a deeply cynical way.

Revenue was up across the board, apparently. U.S. and Canada, Europe, Asia, Latin America. It’s like they’re trying to take over the world, one streaming hour at a time. And they’re raising prices. Of course they are. They get you hooked, then they nickel and dime you. It’s the same with everything. You get a free trial, then BAM! You’re paying for something you don’t even use. The revenue jumped to $12.05 billion. And the earnings per share… $0.56. They’re throwing numbers at you, trying to distract you from the fact that you’re spending your life watching other people live theirs. It’s… it’s a whole thing.

They’re forecasting 15% revenue growth for Q1. Fifteen percent. It’s just… a number. And a 32.1% operating margin. What does that even mean? Are they making more money? Less money? It’s all a shell game. And for the full year, they expect between $50.7 and $51.7 billion. A meaningful deceleration, they say. Deceleration? Like they’re admitting they’re slowing down? It’s almost… honest. And the operating margin is going up. Of course it is. They’re squeezing every last penny out of us. It’s… efficient.

Should you buy the dip? That’s the question, isn’t it? Everyone’s asking. Well, the ad business is “gaining scale.” That’s what they say. “Scale.” Like it’s a good thing. More ads. More distractions. And they’re acquiring assets from Warner Bros. Discovery. Game of Thrones, Harry Potter, the DC Universe. It’s like they’re building a content fortress. A walled garden of entertainment. And Friends and The Big Bang Theory? Ad-friendly content. What does that even mean? They’re admitting their content isn’t good enough on its own? It’s… a statement.

The forward P/E ratio is 26 times 2026 estimates. Twenty-six times. It’s… a number. A reasonable number, apparently. A much more reasonable number than a few months ago. So, you buy it? I don’t know. It’s tempting. But then you think about all the terrible shows you’ve wasted your time watching. And the endless scrolling. And the constant recommendations that are always wrong. And you think, maybe I should just… read a book. But then you remember how much effort that takes. And you think, fine. I’ll buy a few shares. But I’m not happy about it. Not one bit. It’s just… a trade. A very, very reluctant trade.

2026-01-25 00:32

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