Liberty Global (NASDAQ:LILAK) Shares Cross Above Fifty Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Liberty Global shares rose above their 50-day moving average, trading as high as $8.54 before closing near $8.27. The stock’s 50-day average is $7.70, compared with a 200-day average of $7.92.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: Citigroup raised its price target to $9 but maintained a neutral rating, while other coverage includes hold and sell ratings. MarketBeat reports a consensus rating of “Reduce” with a $9 average price target.
• The company missed quarterly earnings expectations, reporting a loss of $0.13 per share versus a forecasted profit of $0.02, although revenue of $1.10 billion slightly exceeded estimates. Insider activity was mixed, with the CEO buying shares while a director sold stock.

Liberty Global PLC (NASDAQ:LILAK - Get Free Report) shares passed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a fifty day moving average of $7.70 and traded as high as $8.54. Liberty Global shares last traded at $8.27, with a volume of 899,868 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Liberty Global Price Performance

The stock's 50-day moving average is $7.70 and its 200 day moving average is $7.92. The stock has a market cap of $1.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.88 and a beta of 0.71.

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

Insider Transactions at Liberty Global

In other news, CEO Balan Nair purchased 164,914 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $6.07 per share, for a total transaction of $1,001,027.98. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 3,276,798 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,890,163.86. The trade was a 5.30% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Charles H. R. Bracken sold 42,975 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.57, for a total transaction of $368,295.75. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders acquired 2,685,679 shares of company stock valued at $17,777,706. Corporate insiders own 9.66% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LILAK. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake 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 worth $85,439,000 after buying an additional 129,952 shares during the last quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP raised its stake in Liberty Global by 44.5% during the first quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 15,395,430 shares of the company's stock worth $135,788,000 after acquiring an additional 4,738,495 shares during the period. Fourth Sail Capital LP lifted its holdings in shares of Liberty Global by 22.6% in the 4th quarter. Fourth Sail Capital LP now owns 2,895,728 shares of the company's stock worth $21,602,000 after purchasing an additional 533,221 shares during the last quarter. Alta Fundamental Advisers LLC grew its position in shares of Liberty Global by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Alta Fundamental Advisers LLC now owns 2,053,559 shares of the company's stock worth $15,320,000 after acquiring an additional 200,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG grew its position in Liberty Global by 45.5% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 462,282 shares of the company's stock worth $3,449,000 after purchasing an additional 144,521 shares during the last quarter. 52.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Liberty Global Company Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source