strong fourth quarter

Netflix reported a strong finish to its fiscal year on Tuesday, with revenue climbing 18% in the fourth quarter to just over $12 billion compared to a year ago.

The streaming giant’s profits during the same period reached $2.4 billion, or 56 cents a share, up from $1.87 billion, or 43 cents a share, a year earlier, the company reported.

The results were slightly ahead of Wall Street estimates and driven by growth in the company’s advertising business, higher prices and increases in paid memberships, which surpassed the 325 million mark, Netflix said in a letter to shareholders.

Netflix said total engagement on its platform, meaning the amount of time its users spent watching content, rose 2% in the second half of the year.

Netflix got a big boost in the quarter from the final season of its hit series “Stranger Things,” among other popular shows, documentaries and movies, including Guillermo del Toro’s “Frankenstein” and “Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery.”

For the year, the Los Gatos-based company reported revenues of $45.2 billion, up 16% from 2024.

The latest earnings report follows news earlier Tuesday that Netflix modified its offer to buy Warner Bros. Discovery, making it an all-cash bid. The companies agreed on the deal, valued at $82.7 billion, in December.

Rival bidder Paramount has made clear it will continue its hostile takeover attempt for Warner Bros., despite some setbacks. It has given the company’s shareholders a Jan. 21 deadline to tender their shares. It remains to be seen whether Paramount opts to extend that deadline.

Warner Bros. has rejected Paramount’s overtures multiple times in recent months, while expressing its preference for its deal with Netflix.

The results were released after markets closed. Netflix shares closed at $87.05, down 1% on Tuesday.