Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) stock has not been spared from the global stock market selloff that has had a harsh impact on the tech sector. Shares have dropped 7.9% over the past month as of late afternoon trading on October 22. The stock is still up over 73% in 2018, so long-term investors should not be overly stricken by the recent plunge.
The company released its third-quarter results on October 16. Netflix met expectations and posted revenue of $4 billion in the quarter. Streaming revenue increased 36% year-over-year compared to Q3 2017. However, the company blew expectations away in another area as it reported 6.96 million subscriber additions. Domestic subscriber additions hit 1.09 million and international subscribers ballooned to 5.87 million.
Netflix has forecast that it will post 9.4 million met subscribers in the fourth quarter. This is a fantastic quarterly report for Netflix as it gears up for a streaming war with its rivals in 2019. Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) is set to launch a streaming service which will aim to compete for subscribers with Netflix and it will offer a substantial library of original and exclusive content. AT&T also plans to launch an alternative streaming service that will be headed by HBO.
The market research firm EMarketer has projected that 60% of Americans will be using streaming services like Netflix, YouTube, Amazon, HBO Now, and others over traditional television providers. The pressure to product original, exclusive, and popular content will only increase for these providers. With this report, Netflix has demonstrated that it is still king in this arena.
