As 2024 winds down, Netflix Inc (NFLX  ) is in the spotlight thanks to its strong historical performance in December and January. The streaming giant is known for delivering robust returns during this period and the stock has hit a new all-time high of $915.97 this week.

What To Know: The stock has recently gained amid market strength following Donald Trump's re-election, as investors expect his pro-business, tax-cutting agenda to boost consumer spending, potentially in discretionary sectors like streaming.

The company also achieved a milestone with its ad-supported tier reaching 70 million monthly users-just two years after launch.

Netflix also surpassed 10 million subscribers in Japan in early 2024, driven by the popularity of Japanese-language content like Tokyo Swindlers and anime, which is now its third-most-viewed non-English category globally.

Seasonal Trends: Per data from Seasonax, Netflix has historically posted an average two-month gain of 14.1%, with a median return of 11%. It has closed this stretch positively 80% of the time over two decades.

During its best December-January performance (2012-2013), shares soared 117.42%. Even in unpredictable election years, Netflix averaged a 34.33% gain.

Holiday binge-watching boosts subscriber engagement and investor optimism for Netflix's earnings as the new year begins.

How To Buy NFLX Stock

By now you're likely curious about how to participate in the market for Netflix - be it to purchase shares, or even attempt to bet against the company.

Buying shares is typically done through a brokerage account. You can find a list of possible trading platforms here. Many will allow you to buy 'fractional shares,' which allows you to own portions of stock without buying an entire share. For example, some stock, like Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A  ), can cost thousands of dollars to own just one share. However, if you only want to invest a fraction of that, brokerages will allow you to do so.

In the the case of Netflix, which is trading at $911.06 as of publishing time, $100 would buy you 0.11 shares of stock.

If you're looking to bet against a company, the process is more complex. You'll need access to an options trading platform, or a broker who will allow you to 'go short' a share of stock by lending you the shares to sell. The process of shorting a stock can be found at this resource. Otherwise, if your broker allows you to trade options, you can either buy a put option, or sell a call option at a strike price above where shares are currently trading - either way it allows you to profit off of the share price decline.