Netflix shares hit record as subscriber growth defies odds once again
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Shares of Netflix soared 13% to an all-time high on Wednesday after the streaming giant's big bet on sports helped add a record 18.9 million subscribers in the holiday quarter, ballooning its already sizeable advantage over other players. The company also unveiled price hikes on Tuesday in markets including the U.S., aiming to boost revenue just as it shifts focus from subscriber growth to other performance metrics such as sales. "We thought it was a typo. Netflix defied the odds once again, delivering subscriber additions far beyond even the most unreasonable subscriber bogey," Bernstein analyst Laurent Yoon said. The company's global subscriber base now exceeds 300 million, giving it a commanding lead in the streaming wars and more leverage in talks with marketing firms as it looks to grow its ad-supported business. Netflix, already worth more than the combined valuations of rivals Disney, Comcast, Paramount and Warn...