Netflix (NFLX) ended 2024 with the addition of 19 million net subscribers in Q4 and over 41 million for the full year globally, giving it a "virtually insurmountable lead in the streaming wars," Wedbush said Wednesday in a note to clients.

The investment firm lifted Netflix's price target to $1,150 from $950 and kept its outperform rating.

The streaming giant boosted marketing spending around Q4 events, while its content flow and quality improved in the last quarter after a drought caused by the strike by writers and actors in late 2023, said Wedbush analysts including Alicia Reese.

"This drove global subscribers to over 300 million at just the right time, as Netflix will not have to update investors on subscriber numbers for a while," the analysts said. "Netflix is now free to focus solely on revenue growth."

"While massive subscriber growth was the primary driver in 2024, we expect price increases to drive revenue growth in 2025 and the ad tier to drive revenue higher in 2026," the note said.

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