Tech stocks: Netflix shares surge

Shares of streaming media behemoth Netflix soared 14% in early trading Thursday after reporting a sixfold-jump in net profits during the fourth quarter.

The company raked in $48 million in profit last quarter, which amounts to 79 cents per share, well above analysts' forecasts of 64 cents. Netflix also earned $1.18 billion in revenue, up 24% from the year before.

Netflix gained 2.3 million subscribers during the fourth quarter.

Shares of Netflix have been on a tear since early last year, when the stock surged nearly $40 in value on January 24. Since then, the company's stock has nearly quadrupled.

Meanwhile, Nokia shares sunk nearly 8% after sales of its smartphones dropped 29% during the fourth quarter.

The devices units responsible for Nokia's smartphone lineup was acquired by Microsoft in a $7.2 billion deal. Nokia currently makes Lumia smartphones running on Microsoft's Windows mobile operating system. The deal is expected to close by the first quarter of 2014.

Follow Brett Molina on Twitter: @bam923.