Netflix rises even as Benchmark remains 'skeptical' of stock price recovery
Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) shares rose early Tuesday even as investment firm Benchmark said it remained skeptical of any "sustained" recovery in the stock following the company's presentation at 2022 CinemaCon.
Analyst Matthew Harrigan, who has a hold rating and a price target of $280 a share on Netflix's (NFLX) stock, noted that company is "effectively much more of a media than tech name" as other media companies such as Disney (DIS) and Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) continue to perfect their interfaces, add technological prowess, and have "deeper IP libraries."
"[Netflix] management absolutely needs to curtail frivolous U.S. programming spend," Harrigan said, adding that the company needs to execute better on what he called its "high teen billion cash programming spend as it covets a 'Bridgerton a month' to counter competition."
Netflix (NFLX) shares rose fractionally to $199.76 in premarket trading on Tuesday.
In addition, Harrigan noted that Netflix (NFLX) needs to "aggressively" increase its spending in Asia, and though big-budget movie projects such as Red Notice and The Adam Project may be high-profile in nature, they may not be enough to attract and retain subscribers compared to television series.
In addition, Benchmark analyst Mike Hickey, who attended CinemaCon, suggested that Netflix (NFLX) is "actively looking" to change its movie approach to recapture theatrical window benefits and could release anywhere between 10 and 12 movies a year in theaters.
"Given Netflixâs big data expertise, it is likely to test various approaches on release windows, splits, and share of marketing relative to exhibitors in narrow geographic markets," Harrigan explained, adding that day-and-date releases from major studios have "gone by the wayside." 
With other streaming services gaining momentum--most notably Apple (AAPL), thanks to its Best Picture Oscar win for CODA, and Amazon (AMZN) due to its acquisition of MGM content that included the James Bond franchise and its upcoming Lord of the Rings series, Netflix is facing more competition than ever.
Seeking Alpha reported that viewers spent 3.2 billion minutes watching Netflix's (NFLX) Bridgerton series, according to Nielsen's latest weekly streaming ratings.