Liberty Global Goes Red

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

Liberty Global (NAS: LBTYA) reported earnings on May 10. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), Liberty Global met expectations on revenue and missed expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue increased and GAAP earnings per share contracted to a loss.


Gross margins increased, operating margins expanded, and net margins dropped.

Revenue details
Liberty Global logged revenue of $2.54 billion. The six analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ expected revenue of $2.54 billion on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 4.3% higher than the prior-year quarter's $2.43 billion.

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Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
EPS came in at -$0.20. The four earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ anticipated $0.16 per share. GAAP EPS were -$0.09 for Q1 against $1.22 per share for the prior-year quarter.

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Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
For the quarter, gross margin was 64.6%, 170 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 19.5%, 30 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -1.0%, 1,510 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $2.62 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.36.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $10.52 billion. The average EPS estimate is $1.46.

Investor sentiment
Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Liberty Global is outperform, with an average price target of $56.38.

At the time thisarticle was published Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor ofMotley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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