Bill Ackman, Netflix'i çöpe atarak 400 MİLYON $ kaybetti. Şimdiyse Netflix'in "dijital yayın savaşlarını kazandığını" söylüyor. "Sizi yakan bir hisse senedini yeniden satın almalı mısınız?

Bill Ackman lost $400M dumping Netflix — now says it ‘won the streaming wars.’ Should you rebuy a stock that burned you?

Thomas Kent

Mon, August 17, 2026 at 1:15 PM GMT+3 8 min read

Moneywise and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue through links in the content below.

Few people willingly revisit a $400 million mistake. Bill Ackman just poured more money into his.

The Pershing Square CEO has bought back Netflix shares (1), four years after dumping an earlier stake at a huge loss. The new position accounted for 4.9% of Pershing Square's portfolio as of June 30 (2).

Must Read

• Jeff Bezos backs a platform that lets anyone invest in rental homes for as little as $100 — 6 ways to build wealth like a landlord without actually being one

• JPMorgan still sees gold hitting $5,000/oz by Q4 — and savvy investors are protecting their wealth with a tax-advantaged Gold IRA. Learn more with a free guide from Priority Gold

• The tax breaks in Trump's 'big beautiful bill' expire after 2028 — and experts say most people won't act in time. What to do before the window closes

"Netflix has since effectively won the streaming wars," Ackman and Pershing Square chief investment officer Ryan Israel wrote in the firm's semiannual report (3).

The firm expects double-digit revenue growth, with content expenses rising more slowly than revenue.

New facts can make a failed investment worth reconsidering. Ackman's experience also shows how difficult it is to choose the right moments to buy and sell an individual stock.

Ackman's costly first bet on Netflix

Ackman first jumped into Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) in January 2022 (4), investing more than $1 billion after disappointing subscriber projections sent its shares lower.

Just three months later, Netflix reported that it had lost 200,000 subscribers during the first quarter. It was the company's first subscriber decline in a decade and its stock plunged 35% in a single day.

Ackman sold all 3.1 million shares, locking in a loss of more than $400 million.

"We have lost confidence in our ability to predict the company's future prospects with a sufficient degree of certainty," he wrote at the time (5).

That's why it's so important to stay informed. When new information can overturn a billion-dollar investment thesis, having reliable research at your fingertips can help you decide whether the facts still support your own picks.

Moby offers expert research and recommendations to help you identify strong, long-term investments backed by advice from former hedge fund analysts.

In four years and across almost 400 stock picks, their recommendations have beaten the S&P 500 by almost 12% on average. They also offer a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Moby's team spends hundreds of hours sifting through financial news and data to provide you with stock and crypto reports delivered straight to you. Their research keeps you up-to-the-minute on market shifts and can help you reduce the guesswork behind choosing stocks and ETFs.

Plus, their reports are easy for beginners to understand, so you can become a smarter investor in just five minutes.

Of course, staying informed also means recognizing when the facts have changed again. Four years after Ackman walked away, Netflix had given him several reasons to take another look.

Read More: Millionaires under 43 hold only 25% of their wealth in stocks. Here's where their money is actually going

What convinced Ackman to come back?

Netflix cracked down on password sharing (6) and introduced a lower-priced advertising tier. The company expects advertising revenue to reach approximately $3 billion in 2026 (7), while the cheaper plan gives it another way to reach price-conscious consumers. Pershing Square also argues that Netflix's enormous subscriber base allows it to spend more on content than rivals while spreading those costs across more customers.

The stock's valuation also changed. Pershing Square began rebuilding its position after Netflix shares fell nearly 50% (8) from their 2025 peak. The firm now calls the valuation a "substantial discount."

Netflix is one of six companies added during Ackman's largest portfolio overhaul in years. Pershing Square also bought Visa (NYSE: V), Mastercard (NYSE: MA), Alcon (SWX: ALC), S&P Global (NYSE: SPGI) and Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE: ICE).

Ackman believes the companies are positioned for strong earnings growth, which he considers the biggest driver of investment value over time.

His recent performance provides some context. Through July, Pershing Square USA was down 3.5% for the year while Pershing Square Holdings had lost 9.2%. The S&P 500 total return index had gained 10%.

Even one of Wall Street's best-known stock pickers can trail the broader market while waiting for his bets to pay off.

That's why many everyday investors may prefer to make diversified ETFs the foundation of their portfolio rather than trying to follow a billionaire into individual stocks.

The beauty of ETF investing is its accessibility — anyone, regardless of wealth, can take advantage of it. Even small amounts can grow over time with tools like Acorns, an app that automatically invests your spare change.

Signing up for Acorns takes just minutes: Link your cards and Acorns will round up each purchase to the nearest dollar and invest the difference in a diversified portfolio.

With Acorns, you can invest in a dividend ETF with as little as $5 — and, if you sign up today, Acorns will add a $20 bonus to help you begin your investment journey.

Why most investors shouldn't copy Ackman

Ordinary investors do not need to make those calls to build wealth.

A broad-based index fund spreads your money across many companies, reducing the damage one bad investment can inflict. Investing the same amount on a regular schedule can also take some of the guesswork out of deciding when to buy.

The SEC defines dollar-cost averaging (9) as investing equal portions at regular intervals regardless of the market's ups and downs. That means buying more shares when prices are lower and fewer when they are higher.

Attempts to time the market often backfire because investors sell during a frightening decline, then wait too long to return. The recovery may already be underway by the time they feel safe again.

Vanguard calculated that a hypothetical $100,000 invested in the S&P 500 throughout the 37 years ending in 2024 would have grown to approximately $4.9 million. Missing only the 10 best trading days would have reduced the ending value to $2.3 million (10).

Past performance cannot promise future returns. The figures simply show how much a few mistimed decisions can cost.

Build a strategy you can live with

None of this means you need to swear off individual stocks. You can reserve a limited amount for companies you understand without making your retirement depend on a few concentrated bets.

The core of your portfolio could remain in diversified, low-cost funds that you buy on a regular schedule. The right balance depends on your goals and how much risk you can comfortably carry.

A financial advisor can help crunch the numbers and build a plan that works. Working with an advisor can become a long-term commitment, so finding someone reliable is crucial.

That's where Advisor.com can come in. The platform connects you with an expert near you for free.

Advisor.com does the heavy lifting for you, vetting advisors based on track record, client ratios and regulatory background. Plus, their network comprises fiduciaries, who are legally required to act in your best interests.

Just enter a few details about your finances and Advisor.com's AI-powered matching tool will connect you with a qualified expert best suited for your needs based on your unique circumstances.

Finding the right advisor isn't always easy; there's no one-size-fits-all solution. That's why Advisor.com lets you set up a free initial consultation, with no obligation to hire, to see if they're the right fit for you.

That one-on-one relationship can be especially useful when you're weighing an individual stock like Netflix against a more diversified approach. There's also a more automated route.

If you prefer a hands-off, tech-forward approach to building wealth, Vanguard's Digital Advisor puts the investing expertise of one of the world's largest asset managers right at your fingertips.

It takes the guesswork out of investing by building a personalized portfolio for you using Vanguard's well-known low-cost ETFs and mutual funds — then keeps things running smoothly with automatic rebalancing.

The platform also offers guidance on saving for retirement and lets you set additional goals as your life evolves.

It can even help you think through debt repayment strategies, potentially freeing up more cash to invest toward your long-term plans.

With a minimum investment of just $100, it's an easy way to get started with professionally guided investing.

For every $10,000 in an all-index portfolio, you'll pay approximately $15 to $16 per year.*

You can even test-drive the Vanguard experience with no advisory fees for the first 90 days.

*All investing is subject to risk, including the possible loss of the money you invest.

You May Also Like

• Dave Ramsey warns nearly 50% of Americans are making 1 big Social Security mistake. Here's what it is and 3 simple steps to fix it ASAP

• Robert Kiyosaki says China is 'dumping' the US as America piles on debt. Fortify your riches with 4 key assets

• A single line on your car insurance policy could be inflating your premium by up to 30% — here's what to change

• This fund has historically paid 8% or higher for 25 months, with just a $100 minimum to start — 4 ways to grow your cash without the stock market

Join 250,000+ readers and get Moneywise's best stories and exclusive interviews first — clear insights curated and delivered weekly. Subscribe now.

Article Sources

We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our ethics and guidelines.

Reuters (), (); Yahoo Finance (); Pershing Square Holdings (); Pershing Square Holdings (); Netflix (); U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (); Macrotrends (); Investor.gov (); Vanguard ()

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.