Liberty Global (NASDAQ:LILAK) Shares Gap Down - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Liberty Global shares fell sharply at the open, dropping from a prior close of $8.28 to $7.88 before recovering slightly to around $8.12.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: the stock carries a consensus “Reduce” rating and an average price target of $8.60, despite Citigroup raising its target to $9.00.
• The company missed quarterly earnings expectations, reporting a $0.13 per-share loss versus analysts’ forecast of $0.02 profit, though revenue of $1.10 billion slightly exceeded estimates. Insiders have also made substantial purchases recently.

Shares of Liberty Global PLC (NASDAQ:LILAK - Get Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $8.28, but opened at $7.88. Liberty Global shares last traded at $8.1150, with a volume of 137,523 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on LILAK shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Liberty Global in a report on Friday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Liberty Global from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Liberty Global from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $8.60.

Liberty Global Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $7.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $7.90. The company has a market capitalization of $1.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -16.57 and a beta of 0.71.

Liberty Global (NASDAQ:LILAK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.02 by ($0.15). Liberty Global had a negative return on equity of 8.50% and a negative net margin of 2.20%.The company had revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.09 billion.

Insider Buying and Selling at Liberty Global

In other news, Director John C. Malone acquired 6,761 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $8.50 per share, for a total transaction of $57,468.50. Following the acquisition, the director owned 185,285 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,574,922.50. This trade represents a 3.79% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP John M. Winter purchased 5,071 shares of Liberty Global stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $19.67 per share, for a total transaction of $99,746.57. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 64,547 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,269,639.49. The trade was a 8.53% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have acquired a total of 15,092,142 shares of company stock valued at $124,845,482 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 9.66% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Liberty Global by 67.3% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 198,628 shares of the company's stock worth $1,233,000 after buying an additional 79,917 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Liberty Global by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 77,003 shares of the company's stock worth $478,000 after acquiring an additional 3,234 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in shares of Liberty Global by 10.8% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 367,176 shares of the company's stock worth $2,280,000 after acquiring an additional 35,844 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC raised its position in shares of Liberty Global by 316.4% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 153,799 shares of the company's stock worth $955,000 after acquiring an additional 116,861 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in shares of Liberty Global by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 158,315 shares of the company's stock valued at $985,000 after purchasing an additional 2,533 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.98% of the company's stock.

About Liberty Global

Liberty Global plc is a leading international telecommunications and television company, offering video, broadband Internet, fixed-line and mobile services to residential and business customers. Headquartered in London and operating as an ADR on the NASDAQ under the ticker LILAK, the company focuses on developing advanced broadband networks and delivering entertainment and connectivity solutions across Europe.

The company's core products include high-speed cable broadband, digital and interactive television, fixed-line telephony, and mobile services.

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