Liberty Global (NASDAQ:LILAK) Sees Strong Trading Volume – Still a Buy?

Liberty Global PLC (NASDAQ:LILAK) shares saw unusually-high trading volume on Monday . Approximately 3,164,070 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 235% from the previous session’s volume of 943,612 shares.The stock last traded at $4.9950 and had previously closed at $4.79.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LILAK has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered Liberty Global from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Liberty Global in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $8.20.

Liberty Global Stock Up 10.6%

The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $7.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $7.90. The company has a market cap of $1.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.63 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.78.

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

Insider Activity at Liberty Global

In other Liberty Global news, Director Brendan J. Paddick bought 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $4.88 per share, with a total value of $488,000.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 1,559,542 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,610,564.96. The trade was a 6.85% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Balan Nair purchased 164,914 shares of Liberty Global stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $6.07 per share, with a total value of $1,001,027.98. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 3,276,798 shares in the company, valued at $19,890,163.86. This trade represents a 5.30% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have acquired a total of 12,691,377 shares of company stock worth $108,718,204 in the last three months. 9.66% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Liberty Global

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LILAK. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Liberty Global by 377.3% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,136 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 2,479 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Liberty Global during the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Headlands Technologies LLC raised its position in shares of Liberty Global by 85.9% during the 2nd quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 8,515 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 3,934 shares in the last quarter. Xponance LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Liberty Global in the 4th quarter worth approximately $75,000. Finally, Diversified Trust Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Liberty Global in the 4th quarter worth approximately $78,000. 52.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.