Liberty Global (NASDAQ:LILAK) Sets New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

Shares of Liberty Global PLC (NASDAQ:LILAK) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday. The company traded as high as $10.42 and last traded at $10.1880, with a volume of 38,234 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $10.30.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on LILAK shares. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Liberty Global in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $9.00 target price for the company. Citigroup boosted their price target on Liberty Global from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Liberty Global in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Liberty Global presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $9.00.

Liberty Global Price Performance

The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $8.52 and its 200 day simple moving average is $8.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.98 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.85 and a beta of 0.75.

Liberty Global (NASDAQ:LILAK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 4th. The company reported ($0.42) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by ($0.41). The company had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.14 billion. Liberty Global had a negative net margin of 3.86% and a negative return on equity of 8.50%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Angoitia Alfonso De purchased 313,104 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $20.95 per share, for a total transaction of $6,559,528.80. Following the purchase, the director owned 476,190 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,976,180.50. This represents a 191.99% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director John Malone purchased 7,960 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $20.08 per share, for a total transaction of $159,836.80. Following the purchase, the director owned 2,313,637 shares in the company, valued at $46,457,830.96. The trade was a 0.35% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders have purchased a total of 696,303 shares of company stock valued at $12,702,161 in the last ninety days. 9.66% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Liberty Global

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Liberty Global by 1.4% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 9,687,133 shares of the company’s stock valued at $85,439,000 after purchasing an additional 129,952 shares during the last quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in Liberty Global by 44.5% during the 1st quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 15,395,430 shares of the company’s stock worth $135,788,000 after purchasing an additional 4,738,495 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC lifted its holdings in Liberty Global by 383.8% during the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 111,243 shares of the company’s stock worth $867,000 after purchasing an additional 88,248 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in Liberty Global by 26.7% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 467,627 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,124,000 after purchasing an additional 98,507 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in Liberty Global by 9.8% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 744,252 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,564,000 after purchasing an additional 66,209 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 52.98% of the company’s stock.

About Liberty Global

Liberty Global plc is an international telecommunications and media company that provides broadband, mobile, television and related digital services through operating companies and joint ventures. Its businesses serve customers in several European markets, including the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands and Switzerland. Its operations include Virgin Media O2 in the UK, a joint venture with Telefónica; VodafoneZiggo in the Netherlands, also a joint venture; and businesses such as Telenet in Belgium and Sunrise in Switzerland.