Liberty Media: Better Than Berkshire

Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei, above, and Chairman John Malone are masters at creating value for shareholders. Photo: Chris Goodney/Bloomberg

Few people have made more money for investors over the past three decades than John Malone. The billionaire cable-TV investor and operator parlayed a small group of cable systems, originally assembled in the 1970s, into Tele-Communications Inc., before selling it to AT&T in 1999 for $48 billion.

Starting over with a handful of former TCI assets, Malone has, through an often mind-bending series of financial maneuvers, built another cable and media empire, Liberty Media. LMCA 1.431064572425829% Liberty Media Corp. Series A Liberty Media U.S.: Nasdaq 29.06 0.41 1.431064572425829% /Date(1475528400343-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 478522 AFTER HOURS 29.06 % Volume (Delayed 15m) : 668 P/E Ratio N/A Market Cap N/A Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee N/A More quote details and news » LMCA in Your Value Your Change Short position And together with Greg Maffei, Liberty’s CEO since 2005, he’s still building.

Investors have been well rewarded along the way. Over the past decade, Malone’s investment returns have bested those of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (ticker: BRKA). A holder of the original Liberty Media in 2004, before it split its U.S. and international assets into separate companies, would have realized annualized returns of 13%, compared with 7.5% for Berkshire and 7.7% for the Standard & Poor’s 500 index, according to Christopher Marangi, co-chief investment officer of the value group at Mario Gabelli’s Gamco Investors. GBL 0.4214963119072708% GAMCO Investors Inc. Cl A U.S.: NYSE ^USD28.59 0.12 0.4214963119072708% /Date(1475528472053-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 101345 P/E Ratio 9.134185303514377 Market Cap 844058920.989092 Dividend Yield 0.27981811822315494% Rev. per Employee 2031620 More quote details and news » GBL in Your Value Your Change Short position

Even after these outsize returns, there is still plenty of room for growth. Liberty’s myriad businesses and assets (see table above) are housed under five main corporate umbrellas—Liberty Media, Liberty Broadband LBRDA -0.6015668718522663% Liberty Broadband Corp. Cl C U.S.: Nasdaq ^USD71.05 -0.43 -0.6015668718522663% /Date(1475528400314-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 1139451 AFTER HOURS ^USD71.05 % Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio 12.710196779964221 Market Cap 12954163435.4138 Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee 720180 More quote details and news » LBRDA in Your Value Your Change Short position (LBRDK), Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings LTRPA 0.4576659038901602% Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings Inc. Series A U.S.: Nasdaq ^USD21.95 0.1 0.4576659038901602% /Date(1475528400177-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 530026 AFTER HOURS ^USD21.8235 -0.1265 -0.5763097949886105% Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio N/A Market Cap 1640252151.90978 Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee 512000 More quote details and news » LTRPA in Your Value Your Change Short position (LTRPA), Liberty Interactive, and Liberty Global. LBTYA -0.43885313048566416% Liberty Global PLC Cl A U.S.: Nasdaq ^USD34.03 -0.15 -0.43885313048566416% /Date(1475528400295-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 2125684 AFTER HOURS ^USD34.03 % Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio N/A Market Cap 35572687741.0251 Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee 509695 More quote details and news » LBTYA in Your Value Your Change Short position Within that group of five are nine stocks, including seven tracking stocks. The complex structure can make it challenging for investors, but those who have taken the time to understand it have found it worthwhile.

Tracking stocks reflect the economics of the underlying business but don’t offer direct economic ownership. Liberty has long favored them, based on its view that investors prefer pure plays and will often assign a so-called conglomerate discount to multi-asset or multibusiness enterprises. Trackers remain controversial, with detractors citing the lack of direct ownership as a drawback.

Looking at the nine stocks, Liberty Interactive offers an appealing play on the out-of-favor QVC home-shopping unit. Depressed Liberty Global tracks an improving group of European cable-TV businesses and could become an acquisition target for London-based wireless giant Vodafone VOD.LN 0.137221269296741% Vodafone Group PLC ADR U.S.: Nasdaq ^USD29.19 0.04 0.137221269296741% /Date(1475528400095-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 4601233 AFTER HOURS ^USD29.2 0.01 0.0342583076396026% Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio N/A Market Cap 76651805653.6045 Dividend Yield 7.015621788283659% Rev. per Employee 550959 More quote details and news » VOD.LN in Your Value Your Change Short position Group (VOD).

Liberty SiriusXM LSXMA 1.0594467333725721% Liberty Media Corp. Series A SiriusXM U.S.: Nasdaq 34.34 0.36 1.0594467333725721% /Date(1475528400327-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 595215 AFTER HOURS 34.34 % Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio N/A Market Cap N/A Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee N/A More quote details and news » LSXMA in Your Value Your Change Short position (LSXMA), Liberty Broadband, and Liberty TripAdvisor TRIP 0.2690724912947135% TripAdvisor Inc. U.S.: Nasdaq ^USD63.35 0.17 0.2690724912947135% /Date(1475528400133-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 839107 AFTER HOURS ^USD63.35 % Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio 67.3936170212766 Market Cap 9202672529.24493 Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee 487699 More quote details and news » TRIP in Your Value Your Change Short position offer a good way to invest in satellite-radio behemoth Sirius SIRI 0.47961630695443647% Sirius XM Holdings Inc. U.S.: Nasdaq ^USD4.19 0.02 0.47961630695443647% /Date(1475528400156-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 47237765 AFTER HOURS ^USD4.22 0.03 0.7159904534606205% Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio 34.916666666666664 Market Cap 20340798170.005 Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee 2067340 More quote details and news » SIRI in Your Value Your Change Short position XM Holdings (SIRI), No. 2 U.S. cable operator Charter Communications CHTR -0.6704448642441753% Charter Communications Inc. Cl A U.S.: Nasdaq ^USD268.16 -1.81 -0.6704448642441753% /Date(1475528400325-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 1876518 AFTER HOURS ^USD268.16 % Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio 21.591851523813357 Market Cap 73142435199.3865 Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee 573655 More quote details and news » CHTR in Your Value Your Change Short position (CHTR), and online hotel and vacation review site TripAdvisor (TRIP), respectively. These three Liberty stocks either track an equity stake or directly hold an equity interest in the three companies. Barron’s wrote favorably earlier this year on one of the smaller Liberty entities, Liberty Braves (BATRK), which tracks Liberty’s ownership of the Atlanta Braves baseball team as well as a real-estate development near the team’s new stadium.

“The Malone magic formula starts with good businesses that are within his core competency, then putting the right management teams in place and leveraging those companies appropriately,” says Marangi. The Gabelli funds own a portfolio of Liberty companies. “One of our golden rules for investing in media and cable is to be on the same side of the table as John Malone and to align our interests with his,” he says.

AT 75, MALONE REMAINS A GUIDING FORCE at Liberty—and remains famously averse to paying taxes. Liberty is known for shuffling assets through tax-efficient transactions including spinoffs, tracking stocks, and other financial maneuvers. Marangi counts seven Liberty spinoffs over its history as well as a half-dozen times when tracking stocks were issued. Among the spinoffs are Discovery Communications DISCK 2.7376425855513307% Discovery Communications Inc. Series B U.S.: Nasdaq ^USD27.02 0.72 2.7376425855513307% /Date(1475168834416-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 19 P/E Ratio 14.605405405405405 Market Cap 10516538504.1569 Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee 924286 More quote details and news » DISCK in Your Value Your Change Short position (DISCA) and Starz STRZA 0.8977236293683873% Starz Series A U.S.: Nasdaq ^USD31.47 0.28 0.8977236293683873% /Date(1475528400234-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 861158 AFTER HOURS ^USD31.47 % Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio 15.656716417910447 Market Cap 3039253945.12146 Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee 2158290 More quote details and news » STRZA in Your Value Your Change Short position (STRZA). Lions Gate Entertainment LGF 1.5007503751875937% Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. U.S.: NYSE ^USD20.29 0.3 1.5007503751875937% /Date(1475528523362-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 2307814 AFTER HOURS ^USD20.29 % Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio 338.1666666666667 Market Cap 2951623391.8026 Dividend Yield 1.7742730409068506% Rev. per Employee 3134660 More quote details and news » LGF in Your Value Your Change Short position (LGF) and Starz are set to merge later this year.

“No other executive in the U.S. has mastered the intricacies of the tax code to the same extent that Malone has,” says New York tax expert Robert Willens. “We are consistently in awe of the structures he and his advisors come up with to rearrange his extensive holdings, always without tax consequences, in the most advantageous way.”

In an interview with Barron’s last week, Greg Maffei, the CEO of Liberty’s U.S. businesses for more than a decade, said the Liberty mission is simple: “We’re trying to create value for shareholders.”

Maffei, 56, and Malone see the world similarly and operate a little like Buffett and his longtime Berkshire partner, Charlie Munger. The Liberty duo focuses on strategy, acquisitions, and capital allocation, while leaving the day-to-day management of various Liberty companies to others. “We benefit from our ability to be long-term and often controlling shareholders, and from our experience and industry knowledge,” Maffei says.

But unlike Buffett, who famously has said the holding period for Berkshire businesses is “forever,” Malone and Maffei will sell if the price is right. They orchestrated a sale of DirecTV to AT&T T 0.39399162767791185% AT&T Inc. U.S.: NYSE ^USD40.77 0.16 0.39399162767791185% /Date(1475528415589-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 16436610 AFTER HOURS ^USD40.77 % Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio 17.61123110151188 Market Cap 249832723754.883 Dividend Yield 4.7093451066961% Rev. per Employee 577456 More quote details and news » T in Your Value Your Change Short position (T) in 2015 in a well-timed deal. Over time, Liberty has excelled at capital allocation, favoring stock buybacks over dividends. This reflects in part Malone’s aversion to taxes. The low-profile Malone wasn’t available to talk to Barron’s.

Malone’s Liberty empire compises companies with a total market value of $80 billion. His personal stake in them is worth about $4 billion. Malone is chairman of four of the five Liberty companies; Liberty TripAdvisor is the exception. He has effective control of the companies through thinly traded super-voting shares (Class B stock), even though his economic interest is usually between 3% and 9% (see table). Maffei controls Liberty TripAdvisor through super-voting stock.

The Malone control structure may not be great corporate governance—super-voting stock disenfranchises noncontrolling holders—but few investors are complaining. Similar arrangements are in place at many family-controlled media companies, including CBS CBSA 0.34709535988308365% CBS Corp. Cl B U.S.: NYSE ^USD54.93 0.19 0.34709535988308365% /Date(1475528429713-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 3046861 AFTER HOURS ^USD54.93 % Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio 16.25147928994083 Market Cap 24361659549.1354 Dividend Yield 1.3107591480065537% Rev. per Employee 879643 More quote details and news » CBSA in Your Value Your Change Short position (CBS), Viacom VIA -1.0761154855643045% Viacom Inc. Cl B U.S.: Nasdaq ^USD37.69 -0.41 -1.0761154855643045% /Date(1475528400160-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 4044374 AFTER HOURS ^USD37.69 % Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio 7.262042389210019 Market Cap 15345907597.1814 Dividend Yield 2.122578933404086% Rev. per Employee 1418480 More quote details and news » VIA in Your Value Your Change Short position (VIAB), New York Times NYT 1.4273719563392107% New York Times Co. Cl A U.S.: NYSE ^USD12.08 0.17 1.4273719563392107% /Date(1475528525290-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 748994 AFTER HOURS ^USD12.08 % Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio 38.33703586163123 Market Cap 1924160409.08709 Dividend Yield 1.3245033112582782% Rev. per Employee 439392 More quote details and news » NYT in Your Value Your Change Short position (NYT), and News Corp NWS.AU 4.9929676511954995% News Corp Cl B U.S.: Nasdaq ^USD14.93 0.71 4.9929676511954995% /Date(1475528400086-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 5015705 AFTER HOURS ^USD14.93 % Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio 49.766666666666666 Market Cap 8158659710.04311 Dividend Yield 1.3395847287340925% Rev. per Employee 364458 More quote details and news » NWS.AU in Your Value Your Change Short position (NWSA), the parent of Barron’s.

The reason for many of the financial machinations, Maffei says, is to avoid taxes on long-held, highly appreciated assets. Liberty got some of its original media assets, including stakes in QVC and Discovery, because TCI wrested them as compensation for agreeing to carry the channels on its cable systems. Malone held on to those assets and others after TCI was acquired by AT&T.

Liberty generally has invested well, getting a 40% equity stake in Sirius XM Holdings, now worth $13 billion, during the 2008-09 financial crisis in return for a much-needed $530 million loan to the satellite-radio company. And Liberty bought 27% of Charter Communications from a group of institutional investors in 2013, and has seen the value of the stake nearly triple since then.

KEEPING TRACK of Liberty’s various companies and tracking stocks is confusing, not least because some of them have the same names.

For example, Liberty Media issued three trackers in April: Liberty SiriusXM; Liberty Braves, for the Atlanta Braves; and Liberty Media, whose main asset will be the Formula One auto-racing business.

Liberty Interactive has two trackers: Liberty Interactive, for QVC, and Liberty Ventures LVNTA -0.7524454477050414% Liberty Interactive Corp. Ventures Series A U.S.: Nasdaq ^USD39.57 -0.3 -0.7524454477050414% /Date(1475528400132-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 892379 AFTER HOURS ^USD39.57 % Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio 26.830756712774612 Market Cap 15204522166.8859 Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee 479891 More quote details and news » LVNTA in Your Value Your Change Short position (LVNTA), whose main asset, a $3 billion stake in Liberty Broadband, was acquired through an equity investment in Charter to help fund its purchase earlier this year of Time Warner Cable. Liberty Ventures is in the process of splitting off a $2.7 billion interest in Expedia EXPE 0.2570253598355038% Expedia Inc. U.S.: Nasdaq ^USD117.02 0.3 0.2570253598355038% /Date(1475528400386-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 1537820 AFTER HOURS ^USD117.02 % Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio 81.83216783216783 Market Cap 17494578049.8877 Dividend Yield 0.8887369680396513% Rev. per Employee 413035 More quote details and news » EXPE in Your Value Your Change Short position (EXPE), the online travel site.

John Malone, the storied chairman of Liberty Media, has built his empire via often mind-bending financial moves. Matthew Staver/Bloomberg

And Liberty Global has two trackers: Liberty Global (LBTYK), for the European cable-TV business, and Liberty Latin America & Caribbean Group (LILAK) for its cable and telecom operations in the region.

Here’s an overview for investors of the nine Liberty companies:

LIBERTY INTERACTIVE. After long viewing QVC as a differentiated retailer largely immune to the industry’s ills, Wall Street got worried after the company stated in its second-quarter earnings report that its U.S. business hit a wall in June. QVC shares promptly fell 30% to around $20, where they remain. Investors now fear Amazon.com AMZN -0.06807514540612199% Amazon.com Inc. U.S.: Nasdaq ^USD836.74 -0.57 -0.06807514540612199% /Date(1475528400336-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 2708251 AFTER HOURS ^USD837.89 1.15 0.13743815283122596% Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio 208.43982761627183 Market Cap 396946904075.442 Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee 522691 More quote details and news » AMZN in Your Value Your Change Short position (AMZN), cord-cutting, and an older customer base. “This company has been around for a long time. You’d think they’d get some credit for adapting to multiple platform changes in the past,” says Mario Cibelli, chief investment officer at Marathon Partners, a QVC holder. “QVC has shown a proclivity to reinvent itself.”

QVC now gets half of its U.S. sales from the Internet, with half of that from mobile. Its strategy is to emphasize regional and house brands while providing entertainment and fostering a sense of community among its shoppers. It has sizable and growing overseas operations in the U.K. and the rest of Europe. Last year it spent $2.4 billion to acquire zulily, a fast-growing online retailer catering to a younger customer base.

QVC’s valuation looks reasonable. It trades for less than 11 times its cash net income of $1.90 a share in the past 12 months. This calculation adjusts net income for noncash goodwill amortization. Bulls such as Gabelli’s Marangi see the stock getting back into the mid-to-high $20s.

LIBERTY GLOBAL has cable-TV operations in much of Western Europe, with 37% of its revenue in the U.K. and most of the rest in three countries: Germany, the Netherlands, and Belgium. Its shares are down 11% this year to $33 and off 30% from their high a year ago, reflecting some competitive challenges and high debt.

“The case for cable could be even stronger in Europe than in the U.S.,” says Marangi. He notes that cord-cutting is less of an issue there because European monthly pricing for cable/Internet-access is half that of the U.S., at about $50 a month.

A merger with Vodafone has been much discussed, though Vodafone announced a year ago that the companies were no longer in talks. While there may be antitrust obstacles to a combination, there would be a lot of benefits, given significant country overlap and the opportunity to offer consumers a bundle of fixed-line and wireless Internet services. UBS analyst Polo Tang has written of potential annual cost benefits of more than $2 billion. Marangi sees upside to $42.

LIBERTY SIRIUSXM. Sirius XM Holdings is an underappreciated story with an entrenched and growing satellite-radio subscriber base totaling 31 million. It has high margins, strong auto-maker relationships, and rising free cash flow that supports an ample stock-buyback program. Sirius shares, around $4.20, are up 30% in the past two years. The Liberty SiriusXM tracker looks appealing at a recent $34 because it trades at about a 13% discount to the value of Liberty’s now-65% stake in Sirius XM.

Maffei calls the discount “annoying” because Liberty Sirius offers a pure play on Sirius XM. One fear is that Liberty will make another attempt to buy Sirius XM at a premium—it tried and failed to do so at a price of around $3.70 in 2014. “We’ve publicly said we’d like to own 100%,” Maffei says. But he insists he won’t overpay. “We’ve been disciplined, and that’s unlikely to happen,” he says.

One bullish factor for the Liberty tracker is that Liberty’s percentage stake in Sirius continues to rise as Sirius buys back stock and could hit 75% or more by the end of 2018, according to Macquarie analyst Amy Yong. The stock could hit $40 if the discount narrows and Sirius appreciates.

LIBERTY MEDIA. Wall Street liked the company’s recent $8 billion deal to buy Formula One. That sent Liberty Media shares up 30% to $29, as the company, which will be renamed Formula One, shifts from an asset play to an operating story. The transaction is classic Malone: complex and leveraged, with benefits that include a low tax rate and modest capital requirements.

Maffei calls it a “great business” with “upside in sponsorship, broadcasting, and venue revenues,” plus a digital opportunity. The Formula One deal, however, wasn’t cheap, at 17 times trailing annual earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization, or Ebitda. The recent run-up in Liberty shares captures some of the upside in Formula One. There are risks. Formula One’s Ebitda is little changed in recent years. Liberty Media now looks fully priced.

LIBERTY BRAVES. Sports franchises are trophy assets, and there are few public plays aside from Liberty Braves and Madison Square Garden (MSG), owner of the New York Knicks and Rangers. Liberty Braves shares trade around $17, giving the company a market value of about $850 million.

The Atlanta Braves were terrible on the field this season, and attendance at home games was weak. The upside could come next season, when the team moves to a new stadium. Based on revenue gains from other major sports teams that moved to new stadiums in the past decade, analysts estimate the Braves team revenue could rise to $325 million in 2017 from about $250 million this year, with pretax profit rising to $60 million from an estimated break even this year.

Looking out a few years, Liberty Braves could lose its tracker designation and become a hard asset, which would help its valuation, although sale prospects for the team look remote anytime soon due to potential tax liabilities. Maffei says sports teams often command four to five times annual revenue. If the Braves revenue hits $325 million, that could imply a valuation for the team of more than $1.5 billion, or $25-plus a share.

LIBERTY TRIPADVISOR. The shares, at around $22, trade close to the value of the company’s holding of 31 million TripAdvisor shares. Liberty TripAdvisor holds a 22% economic interest in the online travel-reviews site. The kicker is that its voting control is 57% through ownership of super-voting shares.

Liberty TripAdvisor holders could benefit from a merger with TripAdvisor if they receive a nice premium for their super-voting shares. A more lucrative scenario would be an outright purchase of TripAdvisor by the likes of Priceline Group PCLN 1.0350053347287442% Priceline Group Inc. U.S.: Nasdaq ^USD1486.72 15.23 1.0350053347287442% /Date(1475528400212-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 512947 AFTER HOURS ^USD1487.05 0.33 0.02219651312957383% Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio 28.329268292682926 Market Cap 72731333008.0295 Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee 632704 More quote details and news » PCLN in Your Value Your Change Short position (PCLN), Alphabet GOOGL -0.4576772877645947% Alphabet Inc. Cl A U.S.: Nasdaq ^USD800.38 -3.68 -0.4576772877645947% /Date(1475528400094-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 1447310 AFTER HOURS ^USD801.49 1.11 0.1386841250406057% Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio 31.007697880467838 Market Cap 543410822772.69 Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee 1314070 More quote details and news » GOOGL in Your Value Your Change Short position (GOOGL), Amazon, or even Alibaba Group Holding BABA -0.3875602608942244% Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. ADR U.S.: NYSE ^USD105.38 -0.41 -0.3875602608942244% /Date(1475528417398-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 10527165 AFTER HOURS ^USD105.35 -0.03 -0.028468400075915733% Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio 23.86484589079874 Market Cap 263975322473.274 Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee 480267 More quote details and news » BABA in Your Value Your Change Short position (BABA). With a market value of $9 billion, TripAdvisor could easily be swallowed, although a deal with Alphabet or Priceline could raise antitrust issues.

LIBERTY BROADBAND, LIBERTY VENTURES. The advantage of holding Liberty Broadband, at $72, is that it trades at a 10% discount to the value of its 17% stake in Charter Communications. One bullish scenario, Gabelli’s Marangi says, is that Charter could buy Liberty Broadband for stock. After a 50% rally this year to $270, however, Charter itself is no longer a bargain. Maffei says the discount on Liberty Broadband shares may reflect fears about “taxes or complexity.” He adds that Liberty “historically” has been “pretty good at getting full value.”

While Liberty Broadband amounts to a near-100% play on Charter, Liberty Ventures, which holds stakes in Liberty Broadband and Charter Communications with a combined value of $4.5 billion, is a more diluted Charter play thanks to series of other investments, including stakes in Lending Tree TREE 0.2579713135899288% LendingTree Inc. U.S.: Nasdaq ^USD97.16 0.25 0.2579713135899288% /Date(1475528400408-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 239059 AFTER HOURS ^USD97.16 % Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio 24.16915422885572 Market Cap 1141987521.60126 Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee 1080600 More quote details and news » TREE in Your Value Your Change Short position (TREE), FTD FTD -0.19445794846864364% FTD Cos. Inc. U.S.: Nasdaq ^USD20.53 -0.04 -0.19445794846864364% /Date(1475528400183-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 80333 AFTER HOURS ^USD20.53 % Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio N/A Market Cap 563021467.610626 Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee 715478 More quote details and news » FTD in Your Value Your Change Short position (FTD) and Interval Leisure Group IILG 0.11648223645894001% Interval Leisure Group Inc. U.S.: Nasdaq ^USD17.19 0.02 0.11648223645894001% /Date(1475528400376-0500)/ Volume (Delayed 15m) : 1218610 AFTER HOURS ^USD17.19 % Volume (Delayed 15m) : P/E Ratio 6.161290322580645 Market Cap 2148499222.95616 Dividend Yield 2.7923211169284468% Rev. per Employee 146797 More quote details and news » IILG in Your Value Your Change Short position (IILG). In a client note, FBN Securities analyst Robert Routh called Liberty Ventures “the most complex” of the Liberty companies due in part to “complex tax benefits that few understand.” The benefit to owning Liberty Ventures is that, at around $40, it recently traded at an estimated 15% discount to its net asset value. Ultimately, Routh wrote, Liberty Ventures could be combined with Liberty Broadband, benefiting Ventures investors.

LIBERTY LATIN AMERICA & CARIBBEAN. The $7.4 billion purchase in May of Cable & Wireless Communications has turned the company into a leader in cable TV, broadband, and telecom in the region. Macquarie’s Yong wrote recently that few businesses offer a “consumer wireline/wireless product across 20 countries and [a] 30-countrywide fiberoptic network.” The Cable & Wireless deal triples its revenue.

Yong carries a price target of $36, compared with a recent price of $29, based on her expectation that the company can trade at 7.25 times estimated 2018 Ebitda. 

Email: [email protected]

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