Netflix Stock Slides Again. Elon Musk Is Still Slamming the Streamer.

Netflix shares were sliding on Wednesday after X CEO Elon Musk told followers to cancel their subscriptions. (Dreamstime)

Netflix stock was sliding again on Thursday, amid a conservative backlash centered on the creator of an animated TV show.

Shares slid 0.8% to $1,162 ahead of the opening bell, having dropped 2.3% the previous session. Futures tracking the S&P 500 were 0.2% higher.

Since Tuesday, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has been sharing and responding to X posts calling for people to boycott the streaming service.

“Same,” Musk wrote on X Tuesday, in response to a post where a user said they had canceled their Netflix subscription.

Conservatives have shared screenshots that appear to show Hamish Steele, who created the animated Netflix show Dead End: Paranormal Park, criticizing U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer for condemning the assassination of right-wing political activist Charlie Kirk.

Barron’s was unable to verify the screenshots because Steele’s X account is private.

“Cancel Netflix for the health of your kids,” Musk said in a follow-up post that criticized the pro-transgender message of Dead End: Paranormal Park.

Netflix didn’t respond to a request for comment from Barron’s.

Before Wednesday’s move Netflix was up 27% since May 12, when Barron’s named it as a stock pick, citing its ability to beat the broader market in times of macroeconomic uncertainty.

If Musk’s calls for a boycott do lead to a drop in Netflix subscribers, it wouldn’t be the first well-known company to struggle in the face of a conservative backlash.

In 2023, Bud Light sales cratered after its owner Anheuser-Busch launched a promotion with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney. The same year, Target shares tumbled about 17% in nine days after the retailer released merchandise celebrating Pride month.

Write to George Glover at george.glover@dowjones.com