In a stunning reversal of fortune, shares of Netflix are now down in 2019 after rising more than 40 percent through the first four months of the year, and the hits kept coming, this time in the form of a Wall Street analyst who reduced his target price "substantially" to $350 while it had been set at $515. Netflix must not only spend more to secure content, it also has to contend with the fact that its competitors are advertising their services, says analyst Jeff Wlodarczak of Pivotal Research. "Against this backdrop of accelerating industry spend, we believe the right move for Netflix management is to also materially accelerate their spend," says the analyst, adding that margins and free-cash flow will likely take a hit in that scenario. Netflix shares have been falling not only due to upcoming competition, but also because it said in July that it lost U.S. streaming subscribers in the second quarter for the first time in its history.

Apple: Tax dispute with Ireland continues

Apple, in the midst of a tax dispute with European regulators, has said the European Union's order for it to pay $14 billion (13 billion euros) in back taxes to Ireland “defies reality and common sense.” Apple is facing off against the EU in a battle over tax havens within Europe. In 2016, the European Commission ordered the tech giant to pay the record sum to Ireland as compensation for a sweetheart deal in the country that allegedly allowed Apple to avoid paying its fair share of corporate tax. Apple is appealing the ruling to the General Court, Europe's second-highest. The legal dispute is a key battleground in Europe's attempt to crack down on corporate tax avoidance.