Netflix Has Been the Hottest Stock Since Christmas. Here's Why.

The streaming service announced its quarterly earnings on Thursday.

January 17, 2019 3 min read

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Positive news on U.S.-China trade talks briefly gave stock prices a jolt mid-afternoon, helping the major indexes post gains on the day.

The Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite indexes rose 0.67 percent, 0.76 percent and 0.71 percent respectively. The Entrepreneur Index™ closed the day up 0.87 percent.

The market was awaiting the financial results of Netflix, which reported quarterly earnings after the market closed. Netflix has been the hottest stock in the tech sector of late. Up more than 50 percent since Christmas Eve, it was up 0.51 percent today. The stock was down in early post-market trading. Netflix is the first of the FAANG stocks to report earnings this quarter.

So far, the financial results of the large banks that have reported this week have sent mixed signals to investors. Yesterday, Goldman Sachs and Bank of America beat estimates and saw good gains in their stock prices. Today, Morgan Stanley reported weak results and took a 4.4 percent hit in the market. Investors are worried that slowing growth in China and the Eurozone will impact U.S. corporate earnings this year. The quarterly reporting season kicks into high gear next week.

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals had the biggest gain on the Entrepreneur Index™ today, rising 3.17 percent. It's up more than 20 percent since Christmas Eve. Fellow drug-maker Alexion Pharmaceuticals, (2.61 percent), was also up smartly.

The clothing makers/retailers had solid gains with Gap Inc. shares up 2.73 percent. Ralph Lauren Corp. (2.13 percent) and Under Armour Inc. (2.14 percent), also rose on the day. Wynn Resorts was up 2.48 percent. Analysts expect the casino operator could report surprisingly good earnings on Monday based on strong gambling revenues in Macau. Truck-maker PACCAR Inc. gained 2.13 percent. The stock is down 15 percent since late September, but is up 7.35 percent so far this year.

With Netflix reporting after the market close, the tech sector was generally quiet. The four FANG stocks all had gains of less than one percent. TripAdvisor Inc. (2.72 percent) had the biggest gain, followed by chip-makers Analog Devices, (2.08 percent) and NVIDIA Corp. (1.93 percent). All thirteen tech stocks on the Entrepreneur Index™ were up on the day.

Retailer Bed Bath & Beyond had the biggest decline on the index today, falling 1.95 percent. It was followed by homebuilder D.R. Horton Inc. (-0.63 percent) and healthcare tech firm Cerner Corp. (-0.45 percent).

The Entrepreneur Index™ collects the top 60 publicly traded companies founded and run by entrepreneurs. The entrepreneurial spirit is a valuable asset for any business, and this index recognizes its importance, no matter how much a company has grown. These inspirational businesses can be tracked in real time on Entrepreneur.com.