New York, Feb 23, 2026, 11:04 AM EST — Regular session
- Netflix slipped roughly 3.5% during late morning trading.
- Investors are eyeing the deadline for a competing offer in the Warner Bros. Discovery deal.
- Fresh timing risk has entered the picture from a U.S. antitrust review.
Netflix dropped 3.5% to $75.89 on Monday, deepening its losing streak. Investors contended with deal uncertainty and a broader risk-off mood in U.S. stocks.
Markets are sifting through new trade-policy news, while eyes shift back to the latest twist in Netflix’s deal for Warner Bros. Discovery assets. Traders are left to figure out if the transaction holds steady — and what price ultimately sticks.
Warner Bros. Discovery’s board has set a deadline for Paramount Skydance: the rival bidder has until Monday’s close to put forward a revised offer. Netflix’s proposal remains on the table, but as of now, there’s still a chance for an unexpected move.
Netflix on Monday released the transcript from co-CEO Ted Sarandos’s Feb. 20 interview, using a regulatory filing. Sarandos dismissed Paramount’s latest move as “noise,” and described Netflix’s bid as “super-simple.” SEC
Paramount’s sweetened bid is on the table, according to Variety, setting up a choice for Netflix: either up its own offer or step aside.
Regulatory risk is in sharper focus now. The U.S. Justice Department’s Antitrust Division has begun probing Netflix’s planned acquisition of Warner’s studio and streaming assets, according to TheWrap. Investigators want documents and sworn statements as part of the review.
According to Bloomberg, the review has raised questions about Netflix’s influence with creators, and regulators are scrutinizing how that could affect bargaining power if it merges with Warner.
On Monday, Sarandos publicly called the deal a growth move for the sector, while criticizing Paramount’s bid as just another old-school media merger focused on deep cost-cutting, according to the Guardian.
The risks aren’t hard to spot: a competing bid would force up the price, and regulatory wrangling could stall the deal’s close, capping Netflix’s value. Outcry is growing as well, with prominent opponents calling on Washington to dig into the merger.
Eyes are on any after-hours word from Paramount about its bid, as well as Warner’s board response and where the DOJ review stands. Warner scheduled a shareholder vote on the Netflix tie-up for March 20, 2026.
