Rerun or new season?

On days when the broad market is making a forceful move, it’s always interesting to see which stocks are bucking the trend—and consider what, if anything, such contrarian behavior might suggest.

For example, on Thursday when the S&P 500 (SPX) was down more than 1.2%, Netflix (NFLX) was up more than 3%. But that move followed a 5.3% post-earnings decline on Wednesday, which dropped NFLX to its lowest level since August 2024:

While a bounce after an earnings sell-off is far from uncommon, the fact that NFLX staged a rally after its July post-earnings drop may lead some observers to anticipate a similar move. That’s certainly possible, but it’s important to point out that the sell-off at the beginning of this chart is just a portion of the 40% correction that began with the stock’s April earnings sell-off. That said, it would be equally fair to note that this move unfolded when NFLX was at a four-month high rather than the multi-year low it hit this week.

Currently, NFLX’s decline from its 2025 all-time high is its longest correction on record, if not its deepest—on a percentage basis, the 2021-2022 was bigger. The stock has fallen nearly 50% from that high and has retraced nearly 62% of its 2022-2025 rally. A monthly chart shows NFLX is currently testing possible support around its 2021 highs:

It’s too early to know whether Thursday’s rally was a reflexive counterreaction to Wednesday’s sell-off, but further near-term relative strength—especially if it continues in the face of broader market weakness—could boost confidence among traders that the stock has found its footing, at least temporarily.

For their part, Morgan Stanley & Co. analysts reiterated their Overweight rating on NFLX shares after Wednesday’s earnings announcement, describing the company as “taking decisive action to address concerns around decelerating revenue growth, engagement erosion and a content strategy that has recently lacked home runs.” While they conceded “those looking for a new narrative or strategic pivot will be disappointed, the company is doubling down on its core competency.”¹

Market Mover Update: Yesterday’s stock sell-off featured a couple of familiar catalysts—more AI volatility (highlighted by Meta’s post-earnings sell-off) and another oil rally.

MiniMed (MMED), which experienced heavy call volume on Monday, also bucked Thursday’s market weakness (see “Two sides to every trade”).

Today’s numbers include (all times ET): consumer sentiment (10 a.m.).

Today’s earnings include: American Express (AXP), SLB (SLB).

Click here to log on to your account or learn more about E*TRADE's trading platforms, or follow the Company on X (Twitter), @ETRADE, for useful trading and investing insights.

¹ MorganStanley.com. Room To Do Better; Stay OW. 10/21/26.