First Wilshire Securities Management Inc. Purchases 934,887 Shares of Liberty Global Ltd. (NASDAQ:LBTYA)

First Wilshire Securities Management Inc. boosted its position in Liberty Global Ltd. (NASDAQ:LBTYA) by 109.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,789,493 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 934,887 shares during the quarter. Liberty Global accounts for 10.3% of First Wilshire Securities Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its largest holding. First Wilshire Securities Management Inc.’s holdings in Liberty Global were worth $31,799,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LBTYA. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC lifted its stake in shares of Liberty Global by 8.5% during the fourth quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 4,518,231 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,290,000 after purchasing an additional 352,488 shares in the last quarter. ACR Alpine Capital Research LLC acquired a new position in shares of Liberty Global during the fourth quarter worth about $10,258,000. Hi Line Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Liberty Global by 23.6% during the third quarter. Hi Line Capital Management LLC now owns 1,202,445 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,586,000 after purchasing an additional 229,400 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Liberty Global during the fourth quarter worth about $73,550,000. Finally, Bfsg LLC acquired a new position in shares of Liberty Global during the fourth quarter worth about $106,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 37.20% of the company’s stock.

Liberty Global Trading Up 4.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:LBTYA traded up $0.69 on Friday, reaching $16.84. 1,543,934 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,664,901. Liberty Global Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $15.01 and a fifty-two week high of $20.56. The company’s 50 day moving average is $16.67 and its 200-day moving average is $17.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.28.

Liberty Global (NASDAQ:LBTYA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Liberty Global had a negative net margin of 37.27% and a negative return on equity of 14.07%. The company had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($1.59) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Liberty Global Ltd. will post -0.61 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on LBTYA shares. HSBC downgraded Liberty Global from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $26.00 to $20.00 in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Bank of America downgraded Liberty Global from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $33.00 price objective on shares of Liberty Global in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Liberty Global from $23.00 to $22.50 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on Liberty Global from $22.00 to $20.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $24.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at Liberty Global

In other news, EVP Bryan H. Hall sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.24, for a total value of $456,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 144,934 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,643,596.16. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Liberty Global news, EVP Bryan H. Hall sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.68, for a total transaction of $280,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 129,934 shares in the company, valued at $2,427,167.12. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Bryan H. Hall sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.24, for a total value of $456,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 144,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,643,596.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 102,403 shares of company stock valued at $1,830,233 in the last three months. 11.51% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Liberty Global

Liberty Global Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, provides broadband internet, video, fixed-line telephony, and mobile communications services to residential and business customers. It offers value-added broadband services, such as WiFi features, security, anti-virus, firewall, spam protection, smart home services, online storage solutions, and web spaces; and Connect Box that delivers in-home Wi-Fi service.