January 2025 was a bullish month for many Nasdaq-listed names. But that wasn't the case for all of them.

While the Nasdaq-100 index advanced 2.2% in January, a handful of its constituents (including a market favourite) lost quite a bit of ground. Here they are, from least bad to worst:

• Monster Beverage (NASDAQ: MNST): Down 7.3%
• Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA): Down 10.3%
• Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA): Down 10.6%
• Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: EA): Down 16%
• On Semiconductor (NASDAQ: ON): Down 17%

Not every one of these stumbles has a specific catalyst. Monster Beverage, for example, mostly continued to peel back from an overheated rally that peaked in November 2024.

Other setbacks have clear causes, though. For instance, Nvidia shares were upended by the recent introduction of DeepSeek's AI platform, which reportedly provides a range of artificial intelligence solutions without the need for the number of processors typically required for comparable results. If this new approach to AI becomes the norm, Nvidia's AI processor business may not have as bright a future as once anticipated.

Comcast's stock fell in response to a drop in last quarter's broadband customers, while Electronic Arts shares crashed after it lowered its full-year revenue forecast thanks to tepid demand for its latest soccer video game title.

As for On Semiconductor -- last month's biggest Nasdaq-100 loser -- shares were already lagging headed into the new year, but this sell-off accelerated after a Truist analyst downgraded the stock from a buy to a hold on concerns of weak demand.

Just don't jump to sweeping conclusions

Now what? Obviously, market-defying sell-offs are alarming. They are also warning signs of bigger potential problems ahead. Don't take these warnings lightly.

Not all extreme pullbacks are red flags, however. Sometimes they're opportunities to step into compelling stocks at a discount. Indeed, whereas Comcast is currently surrounded by too many questions to merit owning at this time, every other stock on this list at least has a shot at dishing out longer-term upside from their present prices.

Just bear in mind that there may still be some lingering bearish volatility left to wring out.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

The post These were the 5 worst-performing stocks in the Nasdaq-100 in January 2025 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) surprised investors when management shared its plans to start offering an ad-supported tier of the streaming service in the near future. The company has long eschewed the idea of advertisements on its platform, but it's gotten to work quickly as it looks to stem subscriber losses.

Importantly, the company is looking to partner with other companies in order to streamline the operation. "We can be a straight publisher and have other people do all of the fancy ad-matching," co-CEO Reed Hastings said during Netflix's first-quarter earnings call. With the massive popularity of Netflix, those "other people" could have a big opportunity ahead.

Here are four companies that could benefit from Netflix's advertising plans.

1. Alphabet

Alphabet's (NASDAQ: GOOG) (NASDAQ: GOOGL) Google is an absolute beast when it comes to digital advertising. That said, its premium video advertising experience is limited. While YouTube generated $29 billion in ad revenue for the company last year, Netflix might want more premium advertisements than the standard ad seen next to user-uploaded videos on YouTube. Something more akin to television commercials. 

Google has been pushing into that market. It operates YouTube TV, where it's tasked with filling a couple of minutes of advertising for every hour of programming. It's also worked with Disney since late 2018, serving ads across video, desktop, and mobile.

The real value Google brings to the table is that it has a global user base, just like Netflix. In fact, YouTube is the only streaming service more widely used than Netflix. If the streaming service company wants a simple one-stop shop, Google is it.

2. Comcast

Comcast's (NASDAQ: CMCSA) media subsidiary NBCUniversal is a massive ad seller and a leader in ad technology for television. Its Freewheel ad technology could be the backbone for streaming ads on Netflix, as it already is on its own Peacock platform and several other streaming services. 

Moreover, NBCUniversal already has an ad sales team set up in the U.S. and Europe that could source premium ads for all the inventory coming to Netflix. As such, Netflix might be able to generate the highest revenue per ad impression in those regions by partnering with NBCUniversal.

Despite NBCUniversal's competitive position against Netflix, its ad-tech platform is widely used throughout the media industry. Disney used Freewheel before it switched to Google, for example. So despite the conflict of interest, it's capable of supporting other media companies.

For Netflix to work with NBCUniversal, it may need to find an additional partner or hire some staff in-house for ad sales and integration outside of Europe and the U.S. It's not clear if that's something it's looking to do, but outsourcing could be difficult as The Wall Street Journal reports NBCUniversal is looking for an exclusive contract.

3. Roku

Rumors began swirling that Netflix was interested in buying Roku (NASDAQ: ROKU) earlier this month. That might not be the best investment Netflix could make, and partnering with the connected-TV platform could be a much more reasonable choice. 

Roku could benefit from an ad-supported tier by using it as an opportunity to renegotiate its distribution agreement with Netflix. Roku may look to take a share of the advertising on Netflix, participating in the upside potential of the product instead of taking a flat commission on customers who sign up for the service through its platform. It could also push Netflix to buy ads on its home screen, something it's managed to get Netflix's competitors to do in its negotiations. Disney, for example, often does home-screen takeovers for new Disney+ releases on Roku's platform.

4. The Trade Desk

The Trade Desk (NASDAQ: TTD) offers a demand-side platform that connects media ad buyers with premium connected-TV ad inventory. Netflix could offer excess inventory that it or its partners haven't sold directly through The Trade Desk, enabling it to maintain high-quality ads while keeping a lean advertising sales team. 

The Trade Desk generates revenue by charging ad buyers a percentage of gross spend on its platform. If it has more premium ad inventory to fill via a partnership with Netflix, it ought to be able to increase revenue. Estimates put the amount of annual advertising spend on Netflix in the U.S. and Canada alone at around $2.5 billion. Granted, that likely wouldn't all go through The Trade Desk, depending on Netflix's other ad-tech partners, but a significant chunk could end up coming from its buyers.

Netflix could be a pivotal partner

As Netflix moves toward launching its ad-supported tier, investors will want to pay close attention to which company it partners with, as they could provide a significant boost to revenue over time. While it might take some time for advertising to become a significant part of Netflix's business, the impact could be seen much more quickly for any of the above companies. 

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

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The United States's newer major stock exchange, the Nasdaq is famously home to most of the US's disruptive tech companies.

Probably as a result of this, this index has been a top performer over the past decade. The index alone is up more than 83% over the past 12 months (not even including dividends), and up 181% over the past 5 years.

Is investing in the Nasdaq a good idea?

Since the Nasdaq is a US-based index, it offers many diversification benefits for an ASX investor. Having some investments denominated in a currency outside the Australian dollar can offer some benefits in this regard.

And since the ASX's own tech sector pales in front of the Nasdaq's offerings (more on that later), it can be an easy way to increase your exposure to tech as well.

How to invest in the Nasdaq on the ASX

Well, there are 2 ASX exchange-traded fund (ETF) that directly track the Nasdaq, both from BetaShares. They are the BetaShares Nasdaq 100 ETF (ASX: NDQ) and the BetaShares Nasdaq 100 ETF-Currency Hedged (ASX: HNDQ).

These two ETFs are almost identical, they both mirror the NASDAQ-100 (INDEXNASDAQ: NDX), which holds the 100 largest companies in the Nasdaq Composite.

However, HNDQ is a hedged ETF, which means that it takes currency fluctuations between the US and Aussie dollar out of the equation. In exchange for a slightly higher management fee of course.

NDQ's management fee is 0.48% per annum, while HNDQ's fee is 0.51%. Movements in the exchange rate will affect NDQ though.

So, let's look at which companies these ETFs hold. Here are the top 10, according to BetaShares:

So it is very obvious here where the Nasdaq gets it's 'tech-heavy' reputation from. There are some 'non-tech' companies in the index as well, such as PepsiCo Inc (NASDAQ: PEP). But almost half of the index is allocated to the tech space.

Past performance doesn't guarantee future success

So we've already touched on the Nasdaq's performance history. But let's take a look at the BetaShares Nasdaq 100 ETF's performance, given that it takes into account the currency fluctuations that we Australians face.

So according to BetaShares, NDQ has returned 27.34% over the past 12 months, 24.22% per annum over the past three years, and 23.67% per annum over the past five years.

That's some impressive numbers to be sure. However, it's worth noting that all sectors and indexes have their time in the sun, and the Nasdaq is no different.

Sure, this index is up an impressive 396% over the past decade. But before that, the picture was not as bright. The dot-com crash of the early 2000s hit the Nasdaq hard. In fact, it took until December 2014 for the index to once again hit the peaks that it first hit back in early 2000.

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Shares of AMC Entertainment Holdings (NYSE: AMC) have been on a wild ride recently, as the theater chain's stock is caught up in the buying frenzy induced by online discussions on a Reddit forum. Despite this, the fundamental outlook for the company hasn't changed all that much in the past few weeks -- and certainly not enough to justify the frenzied buying.

The substantial increase in the stock price in recent days has allowed management the option to offer more shares to the public and raise much-needed capital. That financial lifeline will be crucial for AMC, which is burning through available cash at a pace of $130 million per month as it continues to manage the operational difficulties created by the coronavirus pandemic. AMC recently raised nearly $1 billion in additional debt issuance, which gave CEO Adam Aron enough confidence to say that bankruptcy is not an imminent threat any longer.

However, just because bankruptcy is not on the horizon at the moment doesn't mean that AMC now on its way to again producing its pre-pandemic revenue and profit levels. The company still faces issues a resolution of the pandemic is unlikely to solve.

Here are two specific reasons why AMC is going to have a hard time bouncing back. 

1. People have upgraded their home-entertainment systems 

Some people like to watch a movie at an AMC theatre instead of at home because of the vast difference in the quality of the viewing experience. AMC theaters have massive wide screens with the latest and loudest surround-sound audio technology that makes your comfortable reclining theater seat rumble.

However, as people were forced to hunker down at home to avoid being exposed to the coronavirus, some upgraded their home-entertainment systems. Indeed, sales of TVs in the U.S. increased by 20% year over year in 2020.

Some regular movie goers also noticed the difference in cost and convenience between theaters and home viewing was becoming significant. Movie ticket pricess, parking fees, child-care costs, concession costs, travel to the theater, and the occasional irritations in the theater with fellow viewers all contribute to make watching a movie at home more acceptable. If you have the latest big-screen TV with a high-quality sound bar, the difference between your home setup and that of the theatre just narrowed. For some, that is enough to keep them at home. 

2. Studios are skipping theatrical releases and going straight to streaming  

During the scramble that ensued at the onset of the pandemic, studios with movies slated to be released either delayed them or instead released them straight to streaming. Comcast's Universal Studios, for instance, put its film Trolls 2 on demand for rental simultaneous to its release in theaters (which were mostly closed and couldn't show it) last April. In September, Disney released its film Mulan straight to its Disney+ streaming service for a premium fee in the U.S. and offered its most recent Pixar production Soul for free to members of Disney+ in December. The results of these experiments appear to have been positive, because other media companies have jumped on board with similar release strategies. AT&T's Warner Media said that all its 2021 movies would be released simultaneously in theaters and for a limited time on its streaming service HBO Max.

These changes could spell big trouble for AMC, which makes much of its revenue from short-term exclusive access to new releases that attract movie enthusiasts to its theaters. Indeed, AMC's share price fell after Warner Media's announcement, and the company's fighting to regain the initial exclusivity window before movies are released to other platforms.

What this could mean for investors 

Overall, AMC will have a difficult time bouncing back from the devastating consequences of the pandemic. People have gotten accustomed to entertaining themselves at home, and media companies have made adjustments to deliver entertainment to their living rooms. Add to those negatives the fact that the rollout for coronavirus vaccines has been slower than anticipated.

New variants of the COVID-19 disease are emerging, and the reality may be that the difficult economic effects of the pandemic last well into 2022. Investors who were hoping for a quick recovery for AMC's revenue and profits might be disappointed in the way things are turning out.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

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Netflix Inc (NASDAQ: NFLX) shares touched an all-time high on Wednesday after the company delivered another impressive earnings report. It added 8.5 million subscribers in the period and said it would no longer need to take on debt.

Despite record subscriber growth in 2020, which was aided by the coronavirus pandemic, Netflix bears continue to roar about the onslaught of competition the streamer is facing.

Over the last year or so, Disney+, Apple TV+, Peacock, HBOMax, and Discovery+ have all joined the streaming fray, and ViacomCBS's Paramount+ is set to launch in March. 

Streaming clearly reached a tipping point last year and the coronavirus pandemic has only accelerated the transition from linear TV to streaming TV that co-CEO Reed Hastings predicted several years ago. For Netflix, the question of whether the company has a sustainable competitive advantage with all the new competition entering the streaming arena bears asking, but after the latest report, there are a number of clear signs that Netflix does have an economic moat. Even better, it is widening.

Pricing power

Netflix said it would raise prices in the US in the fourth quarter, from $13 a month to $14 a month for its standard subscription. With that move, Netflix is now significantly more expensive than all of its competitors except HBOMax.

Data source: Company websites. Table: Author's own.

As you can see, most competing services are just about half the price of Netflix, and the only one in Netflix's range is HBOMax, though ad-free Hulu comes close. That's because, like Netflix, HBOMax has also earned pricing power as HBO has built a powerful brand in premium television over the last 40 years, and the network regularly brings home the most Emmy awards among networks. Netflix has managed to do something similar over its shorter history as its aggressive content spending strategy and efforts to offer something for everyone has paid off. 

Asked about pricing power in the recent earnings call, COO Greg Peters said, "We do think we're an incredible entertainment value, and we want to remain incredible entertainment value." He also explained how the company thinks about price hikes, saying: "OK, we've added more value in the service. Now it's the right time to go back to those members and ask them to pay a little bit more so that we can reinvest it and keep adding it."

Netflix prices its service to optimize its content spend, and that strategy and the quality of its content has allowed it to charge more than its peers, giving it a competitive advantage. It's worth noting also that Netflix as the streaming pioneer has a much larger subscriber base than any of its rivals, giving it another advantage as it can allocate its content spend across more members.

Increasing profitability

Cash burn has long been a problem for Netflix, but the company just told investors that it was very close to being sustainably free cash flow positive, forecasting break-even free cash flow for 2021.

Though cash flow has long been a challenge for the company as the nature of its business demands high upfront costs, on a generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) basis, Netflix's profitability has significantly expanded in recent years. The company posted an operating margin of 18% in 2020 and expects to deliver a 20% operating margin this year. From there, it gets better as management projects an improvement of three percentage points each year going forward, giving the company a margin of 29% by 2024.

That along with its pricing power also indicates an economic moat in streaming. The debutantes are still trying to figure out a way to build out audience and generate a profit. Netflix, with the help of a long first-mover advantage, has been there for a while, and is pressing its foot on the gas pedal at will.

In addition to those strengths, the company's local content focus and global strategy also separates it from the streaming wannabes as it already has a large library of original foreign language content that drives international growth.

Video entertainment is a huge industry and it won't be monopolized. There's room for more than one winner in streaming, especially as the cable ecosystem continues to weaken, but Netflix remains the leader, setting the pace in the industry. Its competitive advantages are clear.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

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Netflix Inc (NASDAQ: NFLX) lost some valuable content rights on 1 January this year. Fans of The Office can no longer watch the series on the service. They'll have to subscribe to Comcast Corporation's (NASDAQ: CMCSA) Peacock in order to catch Michael Scott's antics. 

That's a big loss for Netflix. US subscribers streamed 57.1 billion minutes of the sitcom last year, according to Nielsen. That's by far the most popular of any show on streaming platforms.

While it's a big loss for Netflix, it remains to be seen how much of The Office's popularity was due to Netflix and how much the series actually drew an audience to the streaming service. Peacock's hoping it's the latter, but the rest of Nielsen's data suggests the show's recent resurgence has more to do with Netflix's strength.

What will Netflix subscribers watch?

While The Office was by far the most popular content on any of the streaming services tracked by Nielsen, the list was dominated by Netflix. See the top 10 shows by minutes streamed in the US last year (original series in bold):

Data source: Nielsen. Chart by author.

Notice a pattern?

Netflix completely dominates streaming time across genres and target audiences. It has also managed to get some of its originals in the top 10 despite having fewer episodes of them than the long-running, licensed series that make up most of the list.

The company is capable of pushing users to whatever content it believes will maximise the efficiency of its content spending in the long run. Remember Tiger King? It has the best billboard in the business – the streaming platform's home screen. "It turns out the best place to talk to [subscribers] about Netflix is on Netflix," co-CEO Ted Sarandos said on the company's second-quarter earnings call in July.

In addition, with so much data on its subscribers' viewing habits, Netflix will be able to maintain engagement even after losing The Office or any other licensed series. No one piece of content makes Netflix.

Will stronger competition hurt Netflix?

While Netflix could certainly stomach losing its top content in a vacuum, the reality is The Office and other top content are going to its competitors. As mentioned, the most-streamed series of 2020 is now on Peacock. Additionally, Disney (NYSE: DIS) pulled its films from Netflix over the last few years in preparation for Disney+.

Disney is already showing off the strength of its library and its ability to attract subscribers and increase engagement. Disney+ has 87 million global subscribers as of last month.

Shows like The Mandalorian are a big reason why. In fact, The Mandalorian was the most-streamed series in Nielsen's most recent weekly tabulation, besting The Office. And this was for a week in mid-December, so the series was still on Netflix at the time.

But Disney's success with original series and films may be more a product of its excellent marketing and messaging around Disney+. Millions of consumers were planning to sign up for Disney+ well before the public knew about Baby Yoda. The ability to get a series like The Mandalorian in front of an audience may have been more instrumental in making it popular than the content itself.

That's where Comcast may face a challenge. The company said Peacock had already signed up 26 million accounts as of last month. That's a sizable audience, to be sure. But management remains quiet around how much engagement it's seeing. Investors should look for an update when Comcast reports its fourth-quarter results later this month.

Where Netflix's advantage lies is in its ability to spend its content budget more efficiently than competitors thanks to its large subscriber base and bounty of viewer data. Comcast paid $500 million for the streaming rights to The Office. Netflix can likely get the same level of engagement from far less spending because of its home-screen billboard. 

That gives Netflix more flexibility in its content budget and ensures it doesn't have to overspend, while other streaming media companies spend big in hopes of attracting an audience. Ultimately, that'll show up in Netflix's cash flow as it retains and adds subscribers without spending more than it has to on content.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

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