Netflix Q3 Revenue Rises 12% to $12.87 Billion: EPS Beats Forecasts as Full-Year Ad Revenue Outlook Is Trimmed to About $2.7 Billion
Netflix on October 20 reported its results for the third quarter of 2026: revenue rose about 12 percent year over year to $12.87 billion, in line with the company's own forecast and market expectations. Net income climbed to $3.66 billion from $2.55 billion a year earlier, and diluted earnings per share were $0.87, above the $0.82 analysts had expected. The operating margin expanded to 34.6 percent from 28.2 percent a year earlier, which the company attributed in part to the timing of expenses.
In its shareholder letter, Netflix said third-quarter revenue growth was driven primarily by subscription revenue, reflecting growth in memberships and pricing, growth in advertising revenue, and a favorable impact from foreign exchange rates net of hedging. Retention remained healthy in every region, the company said, and churn in the United States and globally improved year over year and was better than forecast.
Looking ahead, Netflix expects fourth-quarter revenue of $13.44 billion, up about 12 percent year over year, and narrowed its full-year 2026 revenue forecast to $51.1 billion, the low end of its prior $51 billion to $51.4 billion range. It also cut its 2026 advertising revenue outlook to about $2.7 billion from roughly $3 billion, citing a slower-than-expected rollout of some advertising product capabilities. The company said last week's reduction of about 1,000 jobs, roughly 6 percent of its workforce, will weigh on the fourth-quarter operating margin by about 120 basis points. Netflix shares fell about 4 percent in after-hours trading following the report.
On leadership, former Disney and Fox executive Peter Rice will become chief content officer on October 26, succeeding the departing Bela Bajaria, and Rice will choose the successor to film chief Dan Lin. The earnings report was the company's first quarterly scorecard since the management shake-up.
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: Netflix 位于加州 Los Gatos 的总部（资料图）。Coolcaesar 摄，CC BY-SA 3.0 授权图片，经 Wikimedia Commons 发布／Netflix headquarters in Los Gatos, California (file photo). Photo: Coolcaesar, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
