Liberty Global (NASDAQ:LILAK) Stock Crosses Above 50-Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

Shares of Liberty Global PLC (NASDAQ:LILAK) passed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a fifty day moving average of $7.42 and traded as high as $7.50. Liberty Global shares last traded at $7.33, with a volume of 1,286,334 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Liberty Global in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Wall Street Zen downgraded Liberty Global from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $8.00 price objective (up from $6.45) on shares of Liberty Global in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $8.10.

Liberty Global Stock Performance

The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $7.42 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $7.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.48 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.96 and a beta of 0.72.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director John C. Malone purchased 17,693 shares of Liberty Global stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 26th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $7.00 per share, with a total value of $123,851.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,725,813 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,080,691. This represents a 0.48% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Brendan J. Paddick acquired 100,000 shares of Liberty Global stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,610,564.96. This represents a 6.85% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders purchased a total of 14,820,228 shares of company stock valued at $121,249,631 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 9.66% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Liberty Global

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Liberty Global by 67.3% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 198,628 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,233,000 after buying an additional 79,917 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Liberty Global by 4.4% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 77,003 shares of the company’s stock worth $478,000 after purchasing an additional 3,234 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in shares of Liberty Global by 10.8% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 367,176 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,280,000 after purchasing an additional 35,844 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC raised its holdings in Liberty Global by 316.4% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 153,799 shares of the company’s stock valued at $955,000 after buying an additional 116,861 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc boosted its position in Liberty Global by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 158,315 shares of the company’s stock worth $985,000 after buying an additional 2,533 shares during the period. 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.