LIVE: Netflix reports Q1 earnings
The key numbers will be US and international subscriber growth. Last quarter, Netflix missed slightly on US subscriber growth, but crushed internationally.
Here are Wall Street's estimates, according to Bloomberg:
EPS (GAAP): 4 cents per share versus Netflix's guidance of 3 cents per share.
Revenue: $1.97 billion versus Netflix's guidance of $1.81 billion.
US subscriber growth (net additions): 1.82 million versus Netflix's guidance of 1.75 million.
International subscriber growth (net additions): 4.49 million versus Netflix's guidance of 4.35 million.
In January, Netflix went live in 130 new countries on the same day, an aggressive expansion that put it in every major market except for China (around 190 in total). The fruits of that expansion will show this quarter, and analysts are expecting Netflix to beat international growth estimates, according to Bloomberg.
One key to international expansion is compelling original content, which is much easier for Netflix to bring to all its territories than most other licensed content. Netflix executives have characterized it as the best investment for the moving forward, and the company will release 600 hours of original content this year, including 31 original shows.
A source of concern internationally is the small library of content Netflix has in certain newly launched countries, and how this could impact subscriber additions.
This post will be updated as soon as Netflix releases its results, so click here to refresh.