Loup's Gene Munster: Netflix could lose luster on Wall Street as new streaming rivals launch
- Netflix's future competition "can have a negative impact on the multiple as investors think about different options," Loup Ventures' Gene Munster says.
- Netflix subscription price hike will "set the bar even higher" for the streaming service in the future, Munster adds.
Investors may be less willing to buy Netflix stock in two years as media companies such as Disney, Amazon and Apple will look to command a presence in the online streaming business, venture capitalist Gene Munster told CNBC on Thursday.
Movie watchers will likely subscribe to numerous streaming brands, but the Loup Ventures founder said he isn't so optimistic about the equity's long-term outlook, because it will need more "substantial upside."
"The issue here isn't about whether they have multiple subscriptions. The issue is more competition can have a negative impact on the multiple as investors think about different options," Munster said on "Fast Money."
Netflix, as of Thursday's close, was trading at about 120 times trailing 12 months' earnings.
Munster called Netflix's subscription price increase earlier this week "impressive" because it is "coming from a sign of strength." He said the sooner-than-expected price hike could be good in the near term, but he sees the future as less clear.
"Every time you do that, every time you take a step forward like that, it sets the bar even higher," he said.
After the bell on Thursday, Netflix reported mixed results in its fourth-quarter earnings. The company beat on earnings-per-share — 30 cents versus the 24-cent forecast — and subscription growth. But it missed on revenue.
Shares of Netflix dropped as much as about 4 percent in extended trading. But as of Thursday's close, the stock was up about 50 percent since the Christmas Eve washout.