Rubric Capital Management LP Grows Stock Position in Liberty Global PLC $LILAK

Rubric Capital Management LP lifted its position in Liberty Global PLC (NASDAQ:LILAK) by 44.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,395,430 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,738,495 shares during the period. Liberty Global accounts for 1.4% of Rubric Capital Management LP’s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest position. Rubric Capital Management LP owned about 7.64% of Liberty Global worth $135,788,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in Liberty Global by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 796,975 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,029,000 after purchasing an additional 29,933 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Liberty Global by 6.3% in the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 64,453 shares of the company’s stock valued at $568,000 after buying an additional 3,845 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of Liberty Global by 18.2% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 135,702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,197,000 after buying an additional 20,878 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Liberty Global by 7.7% in the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 213,360 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,882,000 after buying an additional 15,313 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. purchased a new position in shares of Liberty Global in the first quarter worth about $227,000. 52.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Liberty Global Trading Up 3.4%

Shares of LILAK stock opened at $7.68 on Tuesday. Liberty Global PLC has a twelve month low of $4.76 and a twelve month high of $9.13. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $7.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $7.80. The stock has a market cap of $1.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.10 and a beta of 0.72.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on LILAK shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Liberty Global in a report on Friday, July 17th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $8.00 price target (up from $6.45) on shares of Liberty Global in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Liberty Global from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Liberty Global currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $8.10.

Insider Buying and Selling at Liberty Global

In other news, CEO Balan Nair purchased 164,914 shares of Liberty Global stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The shares were purchased 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 owned 3,276,798 shares in the company, valued at $19,890,163.86. This represents a 5.30% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Charles H. R. Bracken acquired 4,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $20.50 per share, for a total transaction of $100,450.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 18,867 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $386,773.50. The trade was a 35.08% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have acquired 14,820,228 shares of company stock worth $121,249,631. Insiders own 9.66% 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.