Comcast reported Q3 2026 results on October 22. Adjusted EPS of $1.07 beat the roughly $0.98–0.99 consensus by about 9%, though it declined 4% year over year. Revenue of $29.3 billion beat estimates near $29.2B but fell 6.1% reported year over year; on a pro forma basis (excluding the Versant separation completed January 2, 2026 and the sale of Sky Germany operations), revenue rose 0.5%. Adjusted EBITDA of $9.11 billion topped the $8.9B estimate, and free cash flow of $4.21 billion beat the $3.2B consensus. The trouble spot was connectivity: Comcast lost 144,000 domestic residential broadband customers, worse than the roughly 131,000–133,000 analysts expected and up from 91,000 losses a year ago, and shed 274,000 video customers. On the bright side, Peacock posted its second straight profitable quarter — its only two since launching in 2020 — with $261 million in adjusted EBITDA, $1.8 billion in revenue, and paid subscribers up 17% to 48 million, boosted by the summer FIFA World Cup ($224M incremental revenue). Universal became the first studio to cross $5 billion at the 2026 global box office, led by 'The Odyssey' at nearly $1.8 billion — Universal's highest-grossing film ever. Comcast said the planned separation of NBCUniversal and Sky into two independent companies remains on track, and paused share repurchases through the separation. The stock initially jumped ~2% premarket before reversing to trade down about 1%.
Why it matters
The bigger picture behind this move, what it means for the company and the sector, and how it fits the trend we have been tracking for weeks.
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The dates, numbers and signals to watch from here, and what would change the story.
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Comcast (CMCSA) — mixed: financial beat versus accelerating broadband erosion. Cable/broadband read-through for Charter (CHTR) and Altice USA, plus competitive signal for AT&T (T) and Verizon (VZ) on fixed-wireless gains. Streaming read-through for Netflix (NFLX), Disney (DIS) and Paramount Skydance on Peacock's path to sustained profitability. Studio read-through: Universal vs. Disney (DIS) box-office share; theme parks vs. Disney Experiences.
One day after Netflix's weak Q4 guide and ad-forecast cut sent the stock down 5-6% after hours, Deutsche Bank broke from the analyst pile-on with a Wednesday note calling the market's reaction 'overly punitive' and framing the dip as a buying opportunity. The bank argued the shortfall is 'unrelated to the core concerns many investors have about the business (i.e. declines in US time spent and a less successful content slate)' and is an operational delay in the ad rollout 'rather than a change in the fundamental trajectory of advertising revenue growth.' The bullish note landed alongside continued target cuts: Rosenblatt reiterated Neutral and cut its price target to $71 from $75, saying it sees 'no clear argument for a much higher sustained growth pace,' while Piper Sandler kept its Overweight/buy rating but trimmed to $78 from $85. The post-print price-target wave has now reached at least 17 brokerages.
Why it matters
The bigger picture behind this move, what it means for the company and the sector, and how it fits the trend we have been tracking for weeks.
What’s next
The dates, numbers and signals to watch from here, and what would change the story.
Why it matters & what’s next are part of Pro, along with the audio summary.
Netflix (NFLX) — stock sank 4-6% on October 21 to two-year lows (~$64-65) and is the biggest Nasdaq decliner
623 ETFs hold NFLX exposure and are under pressure. Peer read-through for Disney (DIS) and Comcast (CMCSA) on streaming-ad economics, and for YouTube/Alphabet and TikTok on the attention-shift narrative behind the selloff.
Netflix shares dropped roughly 6% in premarket trading on Wednesday, October 21, extending the ~5-7% after-hours slide from Tuesday's Q3 earnings report, as at least 14 brokerages lowered their price targets on the stock following the results, according to LSEG data compiled by Reuters. Third-quarter EPS of 87 cents beat the 82-cent consensus and revenue grew 11.8% to about $12.9-13.44 billion, but Netflix guided fourth-quarter net income to $2.79 billion (EPS of 67 cents) versus the $3.07 billion / 73 cents analysts expected, forecast Q4 revenue of $13.44 billion against a $13.51-13.52 billion consensus, and cut its 2026 advertising revenue forecast to roughly $2.7 billion from about $3 billion. If current losses hold, the company is set to shed about $17 billion of market value; the stock has declined more than 26% this year.
Why it matters
The bigger picture behind this move, what it means for the company and the sector, and how it fits the trend we have been tracking for weeks.
What’s next
The dates, numbers and signals to watch from here, and what would change the story.
Why it matters & what’s next are part of Pro, along with the audio summary.
Netflix (NFLX) — directly hit; at least $17B of market value at risk on the day, with the stock down ~26% YTD. Walt Disney (DIS) and Comcast (CMCSA) — read-through on streaming multiples and valuation premium as Netflix trades at ~18x forward earnings vs Disney's ~15x. ETFs holding NFLX — 623 ETFs have exposure to the stock per Seeking Alpha/TradingView coverage, facing correlated pressure.
Huber Research analyst Craig Huber on Tuesday double-downgraded Netflix to Underweight (Sell) from Overweight (Buy) and slashed his price target to $70 from $85, ahead of Netflix's Q3 earnings report next week. In a note to clients, Huber cited several 'bad signs,' including press reports of a planned 5% headcount reduction at Netflix. He noted the last significant layoffs came in Q2 2022, when Netflix cut about 4% of staff after subscriber declines, and flagged fears that engagement on the platform is stalling. Huber also pointed to Netflix's mid-July decision to publish viewer engagement reports just once a year starting in Q1 2027, versus twice a year previously, and warned that competition from YouTube, Disney+, Amazon Prime and others means Netflix will have to keep increasing annual content spend. He added a further concern that Netflix might attempt a major acquisition after its failed bid for Warner Bros. Discovery about 10 months ago. Netflix shares rose a fraction to $70.88 in afternoon trading.
Why it matters
The bigger picture behind this move, what it means for the company and the sector, and how it fits the trend we have been tracking for weeks.
What’s next
The dates, numbers and signals to watch from here, and what would change the story.
Why it matters & what’s next are part of Pro, along with the audio summary.
