Liberty Global Reports Loss in Q4 Despite Y/Y Revenue Growth

Liberty Global LBTYA reported a loss from continuing operations of $2.92 billion in the fourth quarter of 2025 compared with earnings of $2.33 billion in the year-ago quarter.

Revenues increased 9.6% year over year to $1.23 billion. On a rebased basis, revenues decreased 0.5% year over year.

Consolidated Liberty Telecom (comprising Telenet and Virgin Media Ireland) revenues increased 7.3% year over year to $976.3 million. Liberty Growth revenues grew to $36.6 million compared with $35.1 million in the year-ago quarter. Liberty Services & Corporate revenues increased 19.3% year over year and 9.4% on a rebased basis to $266.6 million.

Q4 Details of LBTYA

Telenet revenues of $842.3 million increased 7.8% year over year on a reported basis and declined 1.3% on a rebased basis. Virgin Media Ireland (VM Ireland) revenues increased 4.2% on a reported basis and declined 4.5% on a rebased basis to $134 million.

Liberty Global Ltd Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Liberty Global Ltd price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Liberty Global Ltd Quote

Adjusted EBITDA increased 12.4% year over year to $278.6 million in the fourth quarter. On a rebased basis, adjusted EBITDA declined 0.9%. Consolidated Liberty Telecom adjusted EBITDA rose 0.9% year over year to $365.3 million.

Telenet's adjusted EBITDA declined 1.8% year over year to $305.4 million and was down 9.9% on a rebased basis. VM Ireland's adjusted EBITDA increased 17% year over year to $59.9 million and grew 7.3% on a rebased basis.

LBTYA Subscriber Details

Telenet lost 4,600 fixed-line customers and added 12,400 broadband customers and 2,900 postpaid mobile subscribers in the reported quarter.

Telenet’s fixed average revenue per user (ARPU) in the fourth quarter of 2025 was €63.32, down modestly by 0.7% year over year.

VM Ireland lost 4,200 fixed-line customers and 3,400 broadband customers in the reported quarter. VM Ireland gained 1,500 postpaid mobile subscribers during the fourth quarter.

VM Ireland Fixed ARPU was €60.62, declining 1.1% year over year.

Liberty Global’s JV Details

VMO2 joint venture (JV) revenues were $3.40 billion, down 2.3% on a reported basis and 5.9% on a rebased basis. VMO2 JV lost 18,500 fixed-line customers and 16,700 broadband customers in the reported quarter. VMO2 JV lost 164,800 postpaid mobile subscribers. VMO2 JV adjusted EBITDA was $1.17 billion, up 3.6% year over year on a reported basis and down 0.2% on a rebased basis.

VodafoneZiggo JV revenues were $1.19 billion, up 6.5% on a reported basis and down 2.3% on a rebased basis. VodafoneZiggo lost 16,800 fixed-line customers and 11,900 broadband customers in the reported quarter. VodafoneZiggo added 9,900 postpaid mobile subscribers. VodafoneZiggo JV adjusted EBITDA was $495.7 million, up 5.8% year over year on a reported basis and down 3.4% on a rebased basis.

Balance Sheet & Cash Flow

At the end of the fourth quarter of 2025, Liberty Global had $2.90 billion in cash, investments under SMAs and unused borrowing capacity, down from $2.61 billion at the end of the third quarter of 2025.

At the end of the fourth quarter of 2025, the total principal amount of debt and finance leases was $8.6 billion, up from $8.5 billion at the end of the third quarter of 2025. Average debt tenor is 3.1 years, with approximately 38% not due until 2029 or thereafter.

Cash provided by operating activities was $630.9 million, down 5.4% year over year and up 109% from $301.8 million in the third quarter of 2025.

LBTYA’s 2026 Guidance

For 2026, Liberty Global expects a further improvement in Liberty Services & Corporate performance, guiding to approximately $50 million negative Adjusted EBITDA.

VMO2 guides to a 3-5% decline in total service revenues and a 3-5% decline in Adjusted EBITDA, adjusted for the Daisy transaction, reflecting heightened promotional intensity and continued competitive pressure in the U.K. market.

VodafoneZiggo expects a stable to low-single-digit revenue decline and a mid- to high-single-digit decline in Adjusted EBITDA.

Telenet guides for stable revenue growth and low-single-digit growth in Adjusted EBITDAaL, supported by price indexation benefits and improving commercial momentum, alongside a significant step-down in capex.

LBTYA’s Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider

Currently, Liberty Global carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

The AES Corporation AES, Algonquin Power & Utilities AQN and Pinnacle West Capital PNW are some better-ranked stocks that investors can consider in the broader Zacks Utilities sector. Currently, each stock carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

The AES Corp shares have gained 52.7% over the past year. AES is set to report its fourth-quarter 2025 results on Feb. 26.

Algonquin Power & Utilities shares have appreciated 34% over the past year. AQN is scheduled to report its fourth-quarter 2025 results on March 6.

Pinnacle West Capital shares have returned 7.5% over the past year. PNW is set to report its fourth-quarter 2025 results on Feb. 25.

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