How To Buy Netflix (NFLX) Stock In 2023 – Comprehensive Guide

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Last Updated April 7th 2023
17 Min Read

This guide teaches you how to buy Netflix shares in 2023. We will start by illustrating the basic Netflix stock investing process embraced by most regulated brokers. We will then break down this process, covering each step, in detail. The guide will discuss where to buy Netflix shares and what to look for in the best Netflix shares broker.

Netflix is the most popular digital video streaming company with an interesting history. Starting as a DVD renting company, the on-demand video company has made significant strides that helped revolutionize the film and television series distribution scene and dominate the digital streaming industry for the last 15 years.

But how do you buy NFLX stock today, and should they be on your stock watchlist? Read on to learn everything you need to know about buying Netflix shares today. We will even help you decide if Netflix shares are worth buying right now.

How To Buy Netflix (NFLX) Stock – Overview

Here is the basic Netflix stock buying process implemented by the majority of regulated brokers. It is quite straightforward, and you don't need expert help to buy your first NFLX stock.

  • Step 1: Create a share trader account – Start by identifying a highly regulated broker and create a share investor account with them.
  • Step 2: Verify your identity – Every regulated broker will demand that you verify your trader account before you can start funding that account or using it to buy and sell Netflix shares.
  • Step 3: Deposit funds – After the broker sends you an email notification informing you that the account has been approved, log in and fund that account. Remember that different brokers maintain varied deposit and trade minimums. They also support different funding methods. Consider all these when choosing the best Netflix shares broke.
  • Step 4: Buy Netflix shares – Search for the NFLX stock on the broker's trading platform, hit the 'BUY' option, and proceed to customize the buy order.

 

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Below, we explore these steps in detail – covering where to buy Netflix, everything you need to know about the video streaming company, and discussing whether the NFLX stock is worth buying.

The Netflix Stock Buying Guide – Reviewed

Step 1: Decide Where to Buy Netflix Stock

Netflix is one of the most popular companies in the world. In addition to being a big tech (FAANG) stock, Netflix is a major component of popular indices as well as ETFs in the US and internationally. It, therefore, is listed with countless stock brokerages in and outside of the US – which complicates the decision of where to buy Netflix shares.

Below, however, we outline some of the factors that every share investor must consider when searching for the best Netflix shares broker:

  • Cost of trading: Check all the fees, commissions, and other charges (both trading and non-trading) imposed by different brokers. Assess the impact these will have on the profitability of your trades and only register with the most affordable broker.
  • Access to tools: Compare the trading, analysis, risk management, educational, research tools and other resources availed by different brokers. Only register with the broker with the richest resources of trading tools and resources.
  • Security: It is important that your stock broker Implements different security measures around your funds and personal data. They should, for example, insure your deposit with the likes of FDIC or FSCS. They should also have adequate controls around access and sharing of your sensitive personal information.
  • Regulation and reputation: We recommend that you only create a share investor account with a highly regulated broker. This broker should also have a proven track record of reliability and customer service. 
  • Account minimums: Different brokers maintain different minimum deposit and trading limits. Only create a trader account with a broker whose deposit/trade minimums you can comfortably afford.

To help you get started with Netflix share investing, our analysts have vetted tens of massively popular online trading platforms. Ultimately, they settled on the following two as the best Netflix share brokers.

Let us discuss them both to understand how each works and what makes it the best place to buy Netflix shares.

eToro – Best Netflix Stock Broker for Affordability and Copy Trading

Started in 2007, eToro has, over the years, morphed into one of the largest and most popular online stock trading platforms. Today, it has attracted 25+ million traders who interact with 5000+ financial instruments on its network. These range from Netflix stock, 3000+ shares, commodities, Indices, ETFs, Currencies, and Cryptocurrencies.

Several factors make eToro stand out as one of the best places to buy Netflix and other shares. It has an easy and straightforward client onboarding process, it has a highly intuitive trading interface, and it is a multi-platform brokerage (available as a web trader and on a mobile app).

It also has a rich resource of educational and trading tools – starting with a free demo account – supports a wide range of payment options, lets you trade both actual shares and share CFDs, and is highly regulated and reputable.

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But we consider it the best Netflix share broker because of its affordability and social/copy trading element. For starters, eToro is a commission-free broker and asks that you only deposit a minimum of $10 to start trading ($200 if copy trading). When buying NFLX stock here, you will only have to part with a highly competitive spread.

Its social trading tools allow for seamless interaction between all its platform users. Experts get to learn from one another and collaborate on different projects. Beginners learn and receive mentorship from expert traders.

Copy trading, on the other hand, allows anyone to earn passively on the platform. Experts receive a commission from eToro if they let others follow and copy their trade settings. Anyone else gets to earn without necessarily researching different instruments by simply mirroring the trade settings of highly successful traders onto their accounts.

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Capital.com – The Most Innovative Trading platform

Capital.com is a massively popular multi-asset trading platform. It operates one of the most innovative trading interfaces, which is one of the reasons we consider it the best Netflix shares broker. It, for instance, was among the earliest online brokerages to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) into its trading platform.

This trading platform is also rigged with some of the most advanced research, analysis, trading, and risk management tools. The brokerage, for example, claims to integrate 70+ premium analytical tools into its platform.

Note that Capital.com is a pure CFD trading platform, which has made it massively popular among share derivative traders. These are drawn to such features as its support for margin trading with leverages of up to 1:5 (for stocks) in most jurisdictions.

In addition to its proprietary web and mobile app trading platforms, Capital.com supports third-party platforms – including TradingView and MT4. Some, especially MT4, present traders with a broader range of premium trading and analysis tools – as well as mirror trading and algo-trading.

But these aren't the only reasons why Capital.com makes for the best Netflix shares broker. Others include the fact that it is a multi-asset trading platform listing shares, indices, commodities, ETFs, currencies, and crypto.

Capital.com is also affordable, as evidenced by the fact that it, too, is a commission-free broker, charges a competitive spread, and doesn't charge deposit/withdrawal processing fees. We must also add that to start trading on the platform, you only need to deposit at least $20 via one of the many payment methods supported by the broker.  

Step 2: Research Netflix (NFLX) Stock

Before investing in Netflix, it is important that you first gather as much information about the company as possible. You need to learn how it works, how it makes money, its current financial standing, and the factors affecting its stock price action.

All these help you determine when to buy Netflix stock and whether to hold or sell these shares.

Here is everything you need to know about Netflix.

What is Netflix? 

Netflix is an American multinational digital streaming services provider and a film production company. It is a subscription-based on-video company specializing in the distribution of film and TV Series on behalf of production companies. But it also runs its own production company that creates films, TV series, and comedy specials under the 'Netlfix Originals' brand name.

The company was founded in 1997 as a DVD-by-mail service provider which rented DVDs to clients across the United States through the mail. It was also one of the earliest movie rental companies to embrace Video CDs (VCDs) as a replacement for bulky and costly DVDs. And in 2007, it premiered the Netflix online video streaming service that would go on to revolutionize the entertainment industry.

The company was founded by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California but has since moved its headquarters to Los Gatos, California, US.

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Netflix's big break came with the launch of the online video streaming platform. Netflix's innovativeness has given it a massive competitive edge right from the VCD renting era. From a handful of subscribers a few days after launch, the video streaming company has grown the number of subscribers to more than 223 million at the end of 2022.

It has also enriched its film and series catalogue. It has introduced massively popular TV series and Film catalogues, integrated documentaries, and rolled out Netflix comedy specials. Netflix also provides different video experiences for different users, ranging from 480 pixels to 4K video quality in different subscriber plans.

Netflix Financials

Netflix makes money in two key ways. The bulk of its revenue is made from viewer subscriptions, featuring four subscriber plans. The basic plan costs $9.99 per month, the Standard plan costs $15.49 per month, and the premium plan costs $19.99 per month. In November 2022, Netflix introduced the basic-with-ads plan that costs $6.99. Interestingly, Netflix still operates the DVD rental business in the US – which is its second source of revenue.

Note that Netflix first became profitable in 2003, recording a net income of $6.5 Million and annual total revenue of $272 Million. Since then, the growing subscriber base and introduction of popular feature films and TV shows have helped keep its annual revenues and net income on a sustained uptrend.

The company's annual revenue first broke above $1 Billion in 2007. It rose past $5 Billion in 2014 and surpassed $10 Billion a decade after the launch of the streaming service in 2017. In 2019, Netflix's annual income tore above $20 Billion in 2019, reached $24 Billion in 2020, $29 Billion in 2021, and broke above $31 Billion in the 12 months leading to September 2022. Its net income has also been on a steady rise, having appreciated from $1.86 Billion in 2019 to an estimated $5+ Billion in 2022.

Note that Netflix doesn't pay dividends, choosing instead to re-invest in growing the company.

Netflix Historical Price Performance

Netflix went public in 2002, at the height of the Dot.com market crash, when it was listed with NASDAQ. A total of 5.5 million common stock were availed to the public at an IPO price of $15. Since then, Netflix shares have undergone two stock splits; 2-for-1 in February 2004 and 7-for-1 in July 2015. Each original Netflix share has thus been divided into 14 shares – giving it an adjusted IPO price of $1.

Like its subscriber base and annual revenues, NFLX stock price has maintained an overall uptrend since its launch. It traded below $5 before the launch of the digital streaming service in 2007. But as soon as the digital streaming service started picking pace in 2008, Netflix's stock price embarked on a spirited run that saw it peak above $40 in the second quarter of 2011.

In the fourth quarter of 2011, however, Netflix dumped 75% of this peak value, and its stock price dropped below $10. This was attributed to the loss of subscribers after Netflix announced different subscription plans for DVD renting and streaming services.

The rebound was, however, swift and Netflix recaptured the 2011 peak price in the third quarter of 20213. It broke above $50 before that the end of that year and raced to reach $100 in June 2015. The uptrend continued – albeit with several temporal and short-lived dips – through November 2021. The NFLX hit the current all-time high of $691 – more than 69100% above its IPO price.

2022 has, however, been a rough year for the technology stock as it shed as much as 60% of this peak price. Much of this could be attributed to the bear market, declining customer numbers in the first quarter of the year, and plummeting tech industry stocks.

At the time of writing, Netflix is ranked 82nd among the most valuable companies in the world, with a market cap of $131 Billion.

Factors Affecting Netflix Share Price

After identifying where to buy Netflix shares and understanding how the digital streaming company works, you now need to master the different factors affecting NFLX shares. These will have the most influence on your buy, hold, and sell decisions.

Our analysts believe these are some of the factors that will have the most impact on Netflix's stock price:

  • Subscriber numbers: Netflix reported a net loss in subscriber numbers in the first quarter of 2022 – for the first time since 2022. This caused panic among investors, triggering a massive sell-off and tanking NFLX stock price. As more brands enter the digital streaming space with friendlier plans, watch out for subscriber number reports as they influence the direction of NFLX share price.
  • Disgruntled viewers: You may also want to keep an eye out for growing viewer frustrations, especially about cancelled shows and the type of shows and TV series hosted on the platform. Growing frustrations and controversial shows will often trigger a price drop.
  • Stiff competition: Netflix faces stiff competition from the likes of Disney Plus, Apple TV, and Prime TV. Not only are they scoring more subscriber numbers, but they are also more competitively priced. They have also committed to reviving/spinning off some of the most popular films and shows. All these are to the detriment of Netflix and NFLX share price, which may be affected if more subscribers quit the platform in favour of competition.
  • Company financials: As is the case with any other profit-driven company, the company's revenues will always play a critical role in influencing its stock price. Revenue gains almost always result in gains for the stock price – and vice versa.
  • Industry/Market trends: The direction and performance of both the tech and entertainment industry, as well as the larger stock market, will have a significant influence on NFLX stock price. The current NFLX price drop can – albeit partly – be attributed to the plummeting tech stocks and bear market in 2022. All other factors held constant, you can expect the threat of a recession in 2023 to cause a further price drop for NFLX shares.

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Step 3: Open A Share Investor Account And Buy Netflix (NFLX) Stock

Want to start buying Netflix shares right away? Consider using the following guide – which walks you through the process of buying your first Netflix stock on the all-popular and highly regulated eToro trading platform.

1. Open a stock broker account 

On your browser, open the official eToro website or download the eToro mobile trader app from the app store. Click on the 'Join Now' icon on either platform and complete the user registration form that pops up.

Key in such details as your name and email address, country of residence and phone number, income source and trading experience. You also have to come up with a unique account name and strong password.

open trading account

2. Verify your identity

Since eToro is a regulated broker, it will demand that you verify your identity. Submit a copy of your government-issued identification documents, such as the national ID, passport, or driver's license bearing the names used to create the account.

etoro account verification

3. Deposit funds

Log in to the approved broker account and tap on the "Deposit Funds" icon. On the funding tab that pops up, choose one of the supported payment options, and follow the prompts to deposit at least $10 into that account.

fund account

4. Buy Netflix stock

After the cash reflects in your trading account, click on the "Discover" button to reveal the assets supported on the platform. Choose "Stocks" and find 'Netflix' from the list of supported shares supported on the platform.

Click the "BUY' option against the stock and use the trading tab that pops up to customize the trade. Indicate the number of Netflix shares you wish to buy or how much you want to invest in Netflix – then tap on the "Open Trade" button to execute the trade.

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buy Netflix stock

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Netflix Stock Strengths And Weaknesses

Before hitting the buy button against Netflix stock on any brokerage, you have to ask yourself – Is Netflix even worth investing in? And to answer this question, you need to compare the benefits of buying NFLX shares today against the possible shortcomings of holding on to an NFLX stock.

To help you get started, we have identified a few reasons why you should consider buying Netflix shares in 2023. But we also discuss a few reasons not to buy Netflix shares today. 

Reasons to Buy Netflix Stock in 2023

  • Undervalued: Netflix currently trades close to 60% below its all-time high – which implies that the stock is massively undervalued. This gives you an opportunity to buy the market leader stock at a dip and stand a chance to possibly 2X your investment when it eventually recovers.
  • Market recovery: Even with recovering subscriber number growth and positive annual revenue, Netflix stock price still fell sharply in 2022. This is largely attributable to the extended bear market and plummeting tech stocks. The two, as well as NFLX, will eventually recover, which makes now a good time to start accumulating Netflix stock.
  • Strong financials: Netflix has rather solid financials. Its debt levels are manageable, its total revenue and net income are on the rise, and its subscriber numbers are growing again. These inspire investor confidence in the brand and will possibly help push up NFLX's share price.
  • Netflix's secret weapon: In a battle for higher viewer numbers, Netflix has introduced the 'Basic With Ads' subscription plan. The ad-supported subscription plan is competitively priced and is expected to lure in more paying viewers, helping the streaming improve its competitiveness. It is also expected to help Netflix expand its revenue base, i.e. paid advertisements.

Reasons to Buy Netflix Stock

  • Growing competition: Netflix faces stiff competition from the likes of Amazon Prime, Apple TV, and Disney Plus. Their growing subscriber numbers, richer film and TV series catalogue, the backing of massively popular and financially solid brands, and competitive pricing all threaten Netflix's dominance of the digital streaming industry and its stock price.
  • Declining subscriber numbers: More than a bear market or rising inflation, the greatest threat to Netflix's share price is its declining subscriber numbers. The fact that Netflix and other analysts aren't too optimistic about the company's future subscriber growth says that now may not be the best time to invest in the digital streaming platform.

For more guides on how to buy shares check out our other stock buying guides:

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Conclusion - How To Buy Netflix (NFLX) Stock

Netflix dominates the global digital streaming industry. It has the largest subscriber base, one of the richest film and TV Series catalogues, and multiple subscription plans to cater to different clients. Since its establishment as a DVD rental business, Netflix's growth has been on a sustained uptrend. This explains its overall uptrending NFLX stock – which makes it one of the most lucrative investments of the last two decades.

However, its stock price has been on a downtrend – losing close to 60% of its peak price in 2022. There is also growing concern over its subscriber numbers as well as growing competition from the likes of Amazon Prime and Disney Plus.

There, however, is still a lot of investor confidence in the brand. The majority of analysts consider NFLX stock a 'BUY' and expects it to recover – possibly rally to a new all-time high price – as soon as the bear market that crashed tech stocks dissipates.

Want to buy Netflix shares at the current dip? Use the step-by-step stock investing guide that we have discussed above.

eToro – Buy Netflix Stock Today

Buy Netflix stock today

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FAQs About How To Buy Netflix Stock

How can I buy Netflix stock today?

Start by finding a highly regulated broker that lists Netflix shares. Create a share investor account with them and verify your identity. Fund this account and place a buy order for NFLX stock.

Why did Netflix's share price fall in 2022?

In 2022, Netflix's recorded its largest-ever drop in share price, and it could be attributed to three key factors. First was the dip in subscriber numbers in early 2022, it could also be attributed to plummeting tech and entertainment industry stocks, and it could also be attributed to the extended bear market.

Is Netflix worth buying in 2023?

Yes, the majority of analysis and stock price forecasters believe Netflix shares to be worth buying in 2023 because; NFLX is currently undervalued, the company is quite resilient, and the current bear market cannot last forever.

Will Netflix's share recover in 2023?

We cannot tell with utmost accuracy whether Netflix stock price will rebound in 2022, especially when you consider the many factors influencing NFLX shares price action. The most prevalent being the threat of a possible global recession for the global economy.