Liberty Global (NASDAQ:LILAK) Sees Large Volume Increase on Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Citigroup raised its price target on Liberty Global from $9 to $11 while maintaining a neutral rating. Trading volume rose 67% above its daily average, and shares traded around $9.85.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: the consensus rating is “Reduce,” with a consensus price target of $10; two analysts rate the stock Hold and one rates it Sell.
• Liberty Global reported a quarterly loss of $0.42 per share, missing the $0.01 loss analysts expected, while revenue of $1.12 billion also fell short of estimates.

Liberty Global PLC (NASDAQ:LILAK - Get Free Report) saw strong trading volume on Friday after Citigroup raised their price target on the stock from $9.00 to $11.00. Citigroup currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Approximately 2,093,597 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 67% from the average daily volume of 1,253,111 shares. The stock last traded at $9.8480 and had previously closed at $9.77.

Several other brokerages have also commented on LILAK. UBS Group began coverage on Liberty Global in a report on Thursday, September 3rd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $9.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Liberty Global in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $10.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Liberty Global news, Director John Malone purchased 3,057 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $20.08 per share, for a total transaction of $61,384.56. Following the acquisition, the director owned 3,057 shares in the company, valued at $61,384.56. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Angoitia Alfonso De purchased 313,104 shares of Liberty Global stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $20.95 per share, with a total value of $6,559,528.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 476,190 shares in the company, valued at $9,976,180.50. The trade was a 191.99% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders purchased 689,542 shares of company stock worth $12,644,692. 9.66% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Liberty Global

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Rubric Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Liberty Global by 44.5% in the first quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 15,395,430 shares of the company's stock valued at $135,788,000 after purchasing an additional 4,738,495 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Liberty Global by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 9,687,133 shares of the company's stock valued at $85,439,000 after buying an additional 129,952 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of Liberty Global by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 796,975 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,029,000 after buying an additional 29,933 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Liberty Global by 9.8% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 744,252 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,564,000 after buying an additional 66,209 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in shares of Liberty Global by 26.7% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 467,627 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,124,000 after buying an additional 98,507 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.98% of the company's stock.

Liberty Global Trading Down 0.1%

The firm has a market cap of $1.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.49 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $8.55 and a 200-day moving average price of $8.10.

Liberty Global (NASDAQ:LILAK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.14 billion. Liberty Global had a negative return on equity of 8.50% and a negative net margin of 3.86%.

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.

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