Shares of on-demand video service provider Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) were up in the fourth quarter on strong quarterly subscriber additions, which, as we wrote last quarter, are historically difficult to predict and fluctuate for many reasons. The company has recently reached an all-time high after reporting a solid fourth quarter and providing favorable guidance for 2017. We expect the company to continue to differentiate itself by continuing its unmatched investment in content. Netflix’s investment in original programming could, in our view, reduce the time it takes to achieve its long-term goal of 150 million global subscribers. We retain high conviction in our core investment thesis that the way people watch TV is undergoing a major disruption from legacy time-based networks to on-demand streaming, and that Netflix will be a winner in this shift. (Ashim Mehra)
From Baron Funds' Baron Opportunity Fund fourth quarter 2016 commentary.
