Liberty Latin America (NASDAQ:LILA) Trading Up 13.4% - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Liberty Latin America Ltd. saw a significant stock increase of 13.4%, trading up to $8.13 from a previous close of $7.17, with about 180,276 shares exchanged.
• Benchmark upgraded Liberty Latin America to a "strong-buy" rating, indicating positive sentiment among Wall Street analysts regarding the company's growth prospects.
• The company reported a quarterly loss with a negative earnings per share of ($2.12) and a negative return on equity of 44.60%, raising concerns about its financial stability.

Shares of Liberty Latin America Ltd. (NASDAQ:LILA - Get Free Report) were up 13.4% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $8.39 and last traded at $8.13. Approximately 180,276 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 59% from the average daily volume of 442,180 shares. The stock had previously closed at $7.17.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Benchmark raised shares of Liberty Latin America to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 2nd.

Liberty Latin America Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.78, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.08. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $6.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $6.08. The company has a market capitalization of $1.49 billion, a P/E ratio of -1.26 and a beta of 0.98.

Liberty Latin America (NASDAQ:LILA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported ($2.12) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.01 by ($2.13). The company had revenue of $1.09 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.10 billion. Liberty Latin America had a negative net margin of 26.61% and a negative return on equity of 77.72%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Liberty Latin America Ltd. will post -0.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Liberty Latin America by 12.8% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 12,503 shares of the company's stock worth $80,000 after purchasing an additional 1,422 shares during the period. Searchlight Capital Partners L.P. boosted its position in shares of Liberty Latin America by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Searchlight Capital Partners L.P. now owns 45,708 shares of the company's stock worth $291,000 after acquiring an additional 1,444 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Liberty Latin America by 14.7% during the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 18,677 shares of the company's stock worth $118,000 after acquiring an additional 2,394 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Liberty Latin America by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 73,416 shares of the company's stock worth $467,000 after acquiring an additional 2,997 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming boosted its position in shares of Liberty Latin America by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 31,628 shares of the company's stock worth $201,000 after acquiring an additional 3,100 shares in the last quarter. 18.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Liberty Latin America

Liberty Latin America Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, provides fixed, mobile, and subsea telecommunications services. The company operates through C&W Caribbean, C&W Panama, Liberty Networks, Liberty Puerto Rico, and Liberty Costa Rico segments. It offers communications and entertainment services, including video, broadband internet, fixed-line, telephony, and mobiles services to residential and business customers; and business products and services that include enterprise-grade connectivity, data center, hosting, and managed solutions, as well as information technology solutions for small and medium enterprises, international companies, and governmental agencies.