Netflix Q3 2026 Earnings: It Beat Its Own Profit Forecast, So Why Did the Shares Fall?

Netflix's third-quarter 2026 revenue came in at $12.87 billion, in line with its own July forecast, and its operating margin hit 34.6%, above the 33.2% it had forecast. Profit rose 44%, partly because the year-ago quarter included a Brazilian tax expense of about $619 million. Revenue growth slowed to 11.8%, the slowest in three years. For the fourth quarter Netflix forecasts 11.5% growth and a 26% margin (24.5% a year earlier), and it now expects about $2.7 billion in 2026 ad revenue instead of about $3 billion. Shares fell about 6% in after-hours trading on October 20, news reports said, pointing to the outlook.