Netflix disappoints investors after bid for Warner Bros simplified

Netflix has seen its shares fall sharply despite upbeat financial results revealed hours after it simplified an offer for Warner Bros in a bid to get the deal over the line.

The world's largest streaming service by subscriber numbers said paid households had swelled to a record 325 million over the final three months of 2025. They had stood at 300 million a year earlier.

Its fourth quarter results also showed revenues of $12.1bn during the crucial period, which includes Christmas, beating analysts' estimates. Money latest: How much you need for a house deposit across the UK But shares were down 5% in after-hours trading following a flat performance during the day.

This was explained, analysts said, by its forward-looking guidance on revenue and profits missing expectations at a time of nerves over its move for Warner Bros. Netflix said earlier on Tuesday it had changed the terms of its $72bn (£53.5bn) offer for Warner Bros Discovery's (WBD's) studios, back catalogue and HBO Max streaming division.

The bid - already backed by WBD - now comprised only cash, removing an element of the deal that included Netflix shares, it said. The total value of the deal, $82.7bn (£61.4bn), is unchanged.

The earlier cash-and-shares offer had been seen as adding complication, especially as shares offer no guarantee of future value in the face of a rival, hostile, all-cash bid from Paramount Skydance. WBD and Netflix said in a joint statement that the revised Netflix offer "simplifies" the purchase, "provides greater certainty of value" for WBD stockholders and an "expedited timeline" for WBD stockholders to vote on Netflix's proposal.

During a video conference with analysts, co-chief executive Ted Sarandos said he was "confident" of securing all the necessary regulatory approvals globally, amid concerns including over existing streaming market dominance. The deal could be put to a shareholder vote in April.

The bid on the table from Paramount Skydance is different in that it seeks to buy the whole of WBD for $108.4bn (£80bn) and has been rejected by the company. Paramount argues that its bid offers superior value.

WBD says there are "deficiencies" in that bid. Its tender offer to acquire WBD - which gives WBD shareholders the opportunity to lend their support - is currently scheduled to expire late on Wednesday but is expected to be extended.

Paramount may decide to revise its own terms or offer but the biggest clue to its intentions came when it confirmed plans for a so-called proxy fight in a bid to win the day. This amounts to a campaign seeking a clear out of the Warner Bros board in favour of directors who support its own bid..