Skip to navigationSkip to main contentSkip to right columnADVERTISEMENTNeil Patel, The Motley FoolSat, July 4, 2026 at 8:20 PM GMT+2 3 min readInvestors are pressing pause on Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX). Shares of the video entertainment trailblazer are in free fall. They currently trade 45% below their record high (as of July 1), set about 12 months ago.The streaming stock hit its 52-week low of $70.86 on June 25. Shares are dangerously close to $70. The last time they were below this level was in late 2024.Missed Nvidia in 2009? This Rare Signal Is Flashing Again. In 2009, a "Double Down" signal flashed for a little-known chipmaker called Nvidia. For the first time in years, that same "Total Conviction" signal is flashing for a company 1/100th the size of Nvidia. Continue »Does Netflix present investors with a once-in-a-decade opportunity? Or is it a value trap?Image source: The Motley Fool.The market is losing confidenceIt's always difficult to pinpoint precisely what causes a company's shares to move. With Netflix, investors can identify a few factors that have hurt the market's confidence in the stock.Slowing growth is the first trend to pay attention to. Netflix's management team guided for 13.3% year-over-year revenue growth in 2026. This could be the beginning of a mature phase in the company's life cycle.Streaming competition has never been this cutthroat, as peers jockey for viewer attention. Walt Disney's Disney+ and Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, Warner Bros Discovery's (soon to be Paramount's) HBO Max, Apple TV, and Alphabet's YouTube provide consumers with many choices. This doesn't include social media.Netflix's content costs have also been rising. Now that the business is pursuing live events and sports, it will have to deal with bidding wars that can eat away at its free cash flow (FCF).Split the differenceIf an investment candidate is to qualify as a once-in-a-decade opportunity, it should probably be in the early innings of a major growth spurt. This is not the way to describe Netflix today. As mentioned, the growth is likely to decelerate in the coming years as the business matures.Netflix first launched streaming in the U.S. in January 2007. Had you possessed the foresight and conviction to load up on shares at that time, after 10 years, you would have captured a monster 4,000% return. That was a once-in-a-generation opportunity.On the other hand, I don't view this stock as a value trap. After all, Netflix is a high-quality business. It has a massive user base due to a first-mover advantage. It generated FCF of $9.5 billion in 2025. The leadership team is top-notch. And Netflix has maybe the most highly regarded brand name in the entire industry.Terms and Privacy PolicyEU DSA contactPrivacy & Cookie SettingsMore Info