Jan 24, PR: Netflix stock soared to all-time highs on Wednesday, trading over 13% as Wall Street analysts cheered the company’s fourth-quarter earnings.
Shortly after the market opened, Netflix stock climbed to just below $1,000 per share as analysts hurried to raise their price targets. Talking to Reuters, Bernstein analyst Laurent Yoon stated that, once again, Netflix had “defied the odds.”
The streaming giant secured 18.9 million new subscribers during the holiday quarter, marking the biggest quarterly subscriber growth in its entire history. As of 2025, the platform’s global subscriber count exceeds 300 million – asserting its leadership in the streaming wars.
Already valued higher than the combined market caps of rival companies like Disney Plus and Paramount Plus, Netflix stands to add over $50 billion to its approximately $370 billion market capitalisation if gains were to hold. And the streamer still has significant opportunity to grow, as shown by its recent pivot toward sports.
Netflix concluded 2024 with a bang, broadcasting two back-to-back NFL games that averaged 30 million global viewers. Meanwhile, the viral fight between Jake Paul and Mike Tyson drew an impressive 60 million households. The heavyweight boxing match even reached a peak of 65 million concurrent streams, becoming the most-streamed sporting event of all time. Far from being isolated, these events are mere cogs in a bigger machine as Netflix is doubling down on live sports streaming.
Just recently, the company secured a groundbreaking agreement with FIFA for exclusive broadcasting rights in the United States to the 2027 and 2031 editions of the Women’s World Cup. Earlier in 2024, the entertainment giant finalised a decade-long deal with WWE to broadcast its flagship weekly show, Raw, in markets like the US and the UK. While Netflix’s streaming model may well be a game-changer for Raw’s popularity in India, local fans will have to rely on Sony Sports Network for a while longer to spend their Monday nights watching their favourite pro wrestlers. Reports indicate that the streaming giant may gain streaming rights in India after March 2025, but these rumours remain unsubstantiated.
This sudden interest in sports events has paid off with viewers, but also with investors. Netflix has expanded its catalogue with more high-profile sports content to engage with broader, often younger audiences – but also to boost advertising revenue. Advertisers typically pay premium rates for ad placements during live events that draw massive crowds, especially when A-list singers like Beyoncé join in on the show, just like the star did during halftime at the NFL Christmas Games.
Besides sports, Netflix exhibited a strong content slate in the past quarter with the much-anticipated release of the second season of Squid Game. The sequel to the Korean hit TV show topped the streamer’s charts, accumulating over 126 million views in 11 days. Although its week-to-week viewership dropped compared to its first season, the company’s biggest TV debut to date keeps smashing records.
In India, Squid Game season two became the most-watched international series in 2024, seriously outperforming other foreign productions by totalling 19.6 million viewers. The Korean series launched alongside a video game dubbed Squid Game: Unleashed, which was made available to all players, including those without an active subscription to the platform. Offered for free to non-members for a limited period, this multiplayer party royale game rewarded players with exclusive in-game items for every episode they watched.
It is not the first Netflix ventures into gamification for its hit drama. Last year, the company partnered with iGaming developer Light & Wonder to create the slot game Squid Game: One Lucky Day. Gamers can find many more free slots in India on top-rated platforms. Thousands of slots are accessible with no download on mobile or browser. Users don’t need to create an account to explore a vast library of games unless they’d like to register to claim sign-up offers. With a few clicks, they can try their luck at fun slots like Squidpot or Squid Game Gganbu.
While Netflix hasn’t emerged victorious yet in the gaming department, the streamer has strengthened its strategy by approving numerous Netflix originals based on popular franchises like League of Legends, The Witcher, or Tomb Raider. Combined with its efforts toward sports, this approach seems to bear substantial fruit. The company projects 2025 revenue to range between $43.5 and 44.5 billion. While all financial lights are green, subscribers in several markets will be hit with rising prices. However, this recent price hike doesn’t apply to Indian viewers.