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LBTYA Drops 3% After Q3 Earnings: What Should Investors Do?
LBTYALiberty .(LBTYA) ZACKS·2024-10-31 13:55

Core Insights - Liberty Global's shares fell by 3% following the release of its Q3 2024 earnings, despite a year-to-date gain of 12.6%, which lags behind the S&P 500 index and relevant industry benchmarks [1][2] Financial Performance - The company reported a loss from continuing operations of $1.4 billion in Q3 2024, a significant decline from a profit of $822 million in the same quarter last year [1] - Revenues increased by 1.4% year-over-year to $1.935 billion, with a rebased revenue growth of 2.6% [2] - Adjusted EBITDA rose by 11.8% year-over-year to $668.3 million, with a rebased increase of 9.4% [12] Subscriber Metrics - Total average revenue per unit (ARPU) for fixed customer relationships increased by 0.5% year-over-year to $67.89, while mobile ARPU rose by 3% to $27.62 on a reported basis [3] - Liberty Global lost 12,200 customer relationships in Q2 2024, an improvement compared to a loss of 39,100 in the same quarter last year [4] Regional Performance - In Belgium, revenues increased by 1.3% year-over-year to $785.2 million, with a loss of 8,300 customer relationships compared to a loss of 21,100 in the previous year [5] - Switzerland's revenues grew by 0.7% year-over-year to $865.7 million, with a loss of 600 customer relationships, an improvement from a loss of 11,100 in the year-ago quarter [5] - Central and other revenues surged by 39.6% to $229.3 million [6] Joint Ventures - Virgin Media O2 reported revenues of $3.512 billion, a 0.3% increase year-over-year, but a 2.4% decrease on a rebased basis [9] - VodafoneZiggo's revenues rose by 0.5% on a reported basis to $1.131 billion, with a rebased decrease of 0.5% [10] Balance Sheet and Cash Flow - As of September 30, 2024, Liberty Global had $5 billion in cash and investments, with no material debt maturities until 2030 [14] - Cash provided by operating activities was $449.5 million, reflecting a 37.4% year-over-year increase [16]