Right, gather round, folks, because today we're diving into the glorious, occasionally tear-inducing saga of Netflix stock historical price movements. If you thought the plot twists in *Breaking Bad* were wild, wait until you hear what Netflix shares have been up to since the company floated on the stock market back in 2002. Spoiler alert: it involves more drama than an entire season of *Bridgerton*, and considerably more money changing hands than the contents of the Queen's handbag.
Now, here's a thought to keep you up at night: whilst robots are apparently queuing up to nick everyone's jobs over the next couple of decades, Netflix investors have been quietly watching their portfolios balloon. Perhaps the real life hack wasn't learning to code — it was buying Netflix shares in 2002 when they went for a measly fifteen dollars a pop. If you'd chucked a grand into that IPO, you'd be lounging on a beach right now whilst your mates struggle to remember their passwords for their third job of the decade.
Let's rewind a bit, shall we? When Netflix first listed in May 2002 at $15 per share, plenty of City types scoffed. "DVDs by post?" they chortled, presumably whilst adjusting their ties. "That'll never last!" Well, dear reader, it lasted long enough to kill Blockbuster, which — in a twist of cosmic irony — famously declined to buy Netflix for $50 million in 2000. That decision is now taught in business schools as the financial equivalent of turning down a winning lottery ticket because you fancied keeping the loose change.
Then came 2011, the year of the great Qwikster fiasco. Netflix tried to split its DVD and streaming services apart, raised prices, and shareholders threw a wobbly that sent the stock tumbling from around $300 to under $70 in a matter of months. CEO Reed Hastings apologised so profusely it was practically a Shakespearean soliloquy. The stock eventually dusted itself off, split seven-for-one in 2015, and embarked on a victory lap for the ages, galloping past $700 by late 2021.
But every binge-watcher knows the dread of the season finale. In 2022, Netflix reported losing subscribers for the first time in a decade, and the stock plummeted a