Benchmark stays cautious on Netflix as advertising, password sharing, gaming in flux
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Investment firm Benchmark reiterated its cautious stance on Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) on Tuesday as the streaming media giant's initiatives in advertising, password sharing and gaming are still a work in progress.
Analyst Matthew Harrigan, who has a sell rating and $250 per-share price target on the stock, noted the company's moves in advertising and cutting down on password sharing are likely to be "accretive" to revenue over time, but only offset some of the pressures for subscription revenue. 
Nonetheless, Harrigan added the company's advertising-supported subscription is likely to become a "significant" part of its overall subscriber count. 
"We still estimate [advertising-video-on-demand] could provide $15 to $38 in share value depending on time frame, subject to execution," Harrigan wrote in an investor note. 
Netflix (NFLX) ended 2022 with 230.75M paid subscribers.
With regards to gaming, Netflix (NFLX) said on Monday that it plans to release 100 new games (with 70 in development), including monthly releases, an update that Harrigan said is only likely to lead to "modest retention benefits."
Netflix (NFLX) shares were fractionally higher in premarket trading on Tuesday.
Earlier this week, J.P. Morgan urged investors to buy the pullback in Netflix (NFLX) shares as the company begins its wider rollout of paid sharing.