At the top of Netflix’s quarterly earnings call with analysts, co-chiefs Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters downplayed a report that the company was eyeing a $1 trillion market capitalization by 2030 and attempted to reorient Wall Street’s expectations.

“We often have internal meetings and we talk about long term aspirations,” Sarandos told an after-market analyst call, in reference to the April 14 Wall Street Journal story “Netflix Aims to Join the $1 Trillion Club” that arrived days before its first quarter 2025 earnings.

“It’s important to note that this is not the same as forecast. Our operating plans are the same as our external forecasting guidance,” he added in response to a question from an analyst. Sarandos’ comments followed Netflix’s first quarterly earnings report that, without disclosing subscriber numbers, pointed Wall Street toward revenue and operating income as the streaming giant seeks to control the story of its growth potential.

The...