This Congressman Can’t Stop Buying the Dip on Netflix, Even as It Hit 52-Week Low
A Louisiana congressman with a seat on the House capital markets subcommittee kept buying Netflix through nine consecutive purchases as the stock fell to a new 52-week low, drawing accusations of conflict of interest and leaving every disclosed lot underwater.
Rep. Cleo Fields (D-La.) has disclosed nine Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX | NFLX Price Prediction) purchases since October 31, 2025, and no sales. Each disclosed buy came at a closing price no higher than the previous one.
Netflix now trades at $65.04, while the average analyst price target stands at $91.39, a gap of about 40.5%.
A gap above 40% means Wall Street still expects a recovery that the market has stopped pricing in. Shares just set a new 52-week low. The quarter beat profit expectations but came with a weaker outlook for advertising and cash flow.
Fields kept adding on the way down, and every lot he has disclosed now shows an estimated loss, as his trades show averaging down in practice, which pays off only when the underlying business thesis holds.
That thesis is under strain, and its outcome depends on whether Netflix’s ad and growth problems are temporary or structural.
Fields Kept Buying Netflix as It Fell
The first five buys were $100,001 to $250,000 each. They came between October 31 and November 20, 2025, at split-adjusted closes of $111.89, $110.01, and $105.67. That was weeks before Netflix announced its $82.7 billion Warner Bros. deal.
Two December buys of $1,001 to $15,000 followed at $103.96. Then came a $50,001 to $100,000 purchase at $87.26 in January.
His latest disclosed buy, $1,001 to $15,000 in an E*TRADE account, came on September 14 at an $80.32 close. Netflix rose about 3.8% that day to $77.40, so the dip label comes from the falling price sequence.
The combined ranges suggest roughly $553,000 to $1.4 million invested. Members get 45 days to disclose, so newer buys could exist, though none is known.
His Capital Markets Seat Drew Scrutiny
His timing drew criticism because of his position in Congress. Fields has served on the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets and the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.
Former Rep. Brian Baird (D-Wash.), one of the authors of the STOCK Act, called the purchases a “blatant conflict of interest” and said, “I can’t imagine how this is not an outrage to everyone.”
In October 2025, Fields said, “I’m going to continue to purchase stocks. It’s something I’ve done, and I encourage young people to do.”
At 63, Fields said in July that he would not seek reelection after a Supreme Court redistricting ruling, and he plans to run for a vacant Louisiana state Senate seat. His term ends January 3, 2027.
Ad Forecast Cut Drove Netflix to New Low
In the third quarter, revenue rose 12% to $12.87 billion, operating margin expanded to 34.6% from 28.2%, and diluted EPS rose to $0.87 from $0.59.
Guidance drove the selloff. The company cut its 2026 ad-revenue forecast to about $2.7 billion from roughly $3 billion because some ad products are rolling out more slowly, and it trimmed free cash flow to about $12.0 billion from $12.5 billion.
Its 26.0% fourth-quarter margin forecast includes about 120 basis points of drag from layoffs. Full-year targets include $51.1 billion in revenue and a 31.5% margin.
Shares then fell 5.31%, or $3.65, to $65.04 on about 101.4 million shares. Along the way, an intraday low of $64.10 broke the prior 12-month low of $65.08.
Fields’ Lots Sit Underwater While Analysts Stay Bullish
Estimated declines to the latest close range from 41.9% on the October 31 lot to 19.0% on the September buy. Averaging down only pays if the stock rebounds. If the business has changed, each new buy just makes a losing position bigger.
Wall Street still backs a rebound, with 52 analysts behind a consensus Buy rating and the $91.39 target. That target is one data point, since targets often trail sharp selloffs.
Netflix trades far below its $124.86 52-week high after losing about 47.5% over the past year, leaving a $270.82 billion market value. It is down 30.63% this year, while the S&P 500 is up 13.38%.
What Netflix Needs to Prove on Ads Before Investors Return
Investors betting on Netflix are counting on the ad shortfall as a timing issue. Management said ads are still growing over 80% this year, and ad levels launch in 15 new countries starting March 2027.
But the bear case gains weight if the ad levels prove harder to monetize, because layoffs lift margins only once while slower revenue growth keeps adding up. The open Warner Bros. deal adds more risk.
A forward P/E near 19x already prices in heavy doubt. Management also spent a record $4.8 billion on buybacks last quarter, which suggests it sees value at these prices.
The case for Netflix looks stronger than the case against it, because the valuation leaves room for the ad expansion to develop. Copying Fields carries its own problem, since disclosures can arrive 45 days late.
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Omor Ibne Ehsan is a writer at 24/7 Wall St. He is a self-taught investor with a focus on growth, cyclical, and dividend equities that have strong fundamentals, value, and long-term potential. He also has an interest in high-risk, high-reward investments such as penny stocks.
