5 Charts Netflix Shareholders Need To See

Shares of Netflix Inc NFLX have been surging in recent years, and the stock’s 137.3 percent year-to-date return is more than double the return of any other stock in the S&P 500. What’s behind Netflix’s outsized gains and where will the company go from here?

Here are five charts that tell the story of Netflix’s domination and shed some insight into the company’s future.

1. Subscribers 2. Revenue 3. Income 4. Download Traffic

This chart created by Statista shows the rapid growth of Netflix’s streaming subscriber base, which recently eclipsed 65 million. The popularity of Netflix has exploded, and the company’s already massive subscriber number has doubled since late 2012.

With a dramatically-expanding customer base, it’s not surprising that Netflix’s revenue has also surged in recent years. Between April and June, Netflix generated $1.64 billion in revenue, a 23 year-over-year increase.

Netflix critics point to the company’s difficulties in generating consistent profits, which can be seen in a chart its quarterly income and the stocks whopping 258.1 price-to-earning ratio. However, CEO Reed Hastings’ recent shareholder letter indicated that the plan is for Netflix to continue to invest heavily in overseas expansion, setting the table for substantial profits starting in 2017.

This chart showing Netflix’s share of peak Internet download traffic was included in Hastings’ recent shareholder letter. The chart shows Netflix’s huge and expanding share lead, dwarfing competitors Google Inc GOOGGOOGL (YouTube) and Apple Inc AAPL (iTunes).

5. Younger Demographic

A recent study by Ipsos Media shows that Netflix is now the top preferred network for all viewers ages 13-49 who watch five or more hours of TV per week. Netflix claimed the top spot among all study participant age groups except for the oldest demographic (ages 50-64). This chart shows the stronghold that Netflix has on the coveted younger generation of viewers/customers.