Netflix Orders The Liberator, Strengthens Animation Portfolio

Netflix’s (NASDAQ:NFLX) original animated drama series portfolio is expanding. The company recently ordered a four-part war drama series, The Liberator, which is the first show to be produced using Trioscope Enhanced Hybrid Animation technology.

The Trioscope technology has been developed by Grzegorz Jonkajtys together with School of Humans' L.C. Crowley. The series is produced by A+E Studios and Unique Features along with School of Humans.

The Liberator, set during World War II, is based on Alex Kershaw's book The Liberator: One World War II Soldier's 500-Day Odyssey. The series is created and written by Jeb Stuart of Die Hard and The Fugitive fame.

Innovative Pipeline to Thwart Competition

Netflix has an innovative pipeline of animated projects, including movies like My Father’s Dragon and The Willoughbys along with television series like The Powerpuff Girls. Most of the company’s projects are expected to release between 2019 and 2021.

Netflix’s aggressive push in the original animated programming space reflects growing competition, particularly from Disney (NYSE:DIS) that is set to launch its own streaming service in 2019.

Disney is undoubtedly a dominant name in the animation world, thanks to its solid content portfolio that includes Snow White, Cinderella, and Beauty and the Beast, among others. Moreover, the acquisitions of Pixar, Marvel and Lucasfilm (famous for Star Wars films) have not only strengthened its content portfolio but also expanded its market share.

Further, the pending acquisition of 21st Century Fox’s (NASDAQ:FOXA) assets will expand Disney’s content portfolio significantly.

However, Netflix’s focus on producing more quality original content has been the major driver behind its domination in the streaming market. The company is also snapping up Hollywood talent to boost its movie business. Partnerships with prolific creators like Ryan Murphy, Shonda Rhimes, Shawn Levy and Jenji Kohan are providing an impetus to Netflix’s original content expansion strategy.

Notably, Netflix is set to spend $8 billion on new content production this year alone. The company is set to release 470 originals by 2018, which will take the total count for the year to nearly 1,000. The company plans to release 80 original movies in 2018.

Zacks Rank & Key Pick

Netflix has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Gray Television (NYSE:GTN) is a better-ranked stock in the same sector. The stock carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Expected long-term earnings growth rate for Gray Television is 10%.

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