Liberty Global (NASDAQ:LILAK) Shares Gap Up After Insider Buying Activity

Shares of Liberty Global PLC (NASDAQ:LILAK) gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday following insider buying activity. The stock had previously closed at $5.88, but opened at $6.15. Liberty Global shares last traded at $6.2020, with a volume of 226,342 shares.

Specifically, Director Brendan J. Paddick bought 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $4.88 per share, for a total transaction of $488,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 1,559,542 shares in the company, valued at $7,610,564.96. This trade represents a 6.85% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Balan Nair acquired 164,914 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $6.07 per share, for a total transaction of $1,001,027.98. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 3,276,798 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,890,163.86. This represents a 5.30% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Liberty Global from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Liberty Global in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $8.20.

Liberty Global Stock Up 4.9%

The firm has a market cap of $1.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.49 and a beta of 0.71. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $7.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $7.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.78, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14.

Liberty Global (NASDAQ:LILAK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported ($0.11) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.04 by ($0.15). Liberty Global had a negative net margin of 11.20% and a negative return on equity of 43.70%. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.09 billion.

Institutional Trading of Liberty Global

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rubric Capital Management LP lifted its position 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 period. 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 worth $85,439,000 after buying an additional 129,952 shares in the last quarter. Oaktree Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Liberty Global by 186.4% in the 3rd quarter. Oaktree Capital Management LP now owns 6,669,823 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,293,000 after buying an additional 4,341,307 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 valued at $21,602,000 after buying an additional 533,221 shares during the period. Finally, Alta Fundamental Advisers LLC boosted its stake in shares of Liberty Global by 10.8% in the fourth quarter. Alta Fundamental Advisers LLC now owns 2,053,559 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,320,000 after buying an additional 200,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.98% of the company’s stock.

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.