New York, Feb 19, 2026, 09:19 EST — Premarket
- Liberty Global shares were indicated little changed premarket after a sharp jump on Wednesday
- Company agreed to buy Vodafone’s 50% stake in VodafoneZiggo for €1 billion cash plus equity in a new Ziggo Group
- Investors are watching for regulatory approvals and the next filings tied to a planned 2027 Amsterdam listing/spin
Liberty Global’s Class A shares were little changed in premarket trading on Thursday, hovering around $13.03, after the stock closed up about 17% in the prior session. (StockAnalysis)
The move followed Liberty Global’s agreement to buy Vodafone’s 50% stake in VodafoneZiggo, a deal that would give Liberty full control of the Dutch joint venture and set up a new Benelux holding company. (Libertyglobal)
Why it matters now: Liberty is trying to turn a patchwork of European cable and mobile assets into simpler, more tradable pieces, with a public-market exit route baked in. A U.S.-listed parent promising a local Amsterdam listing and a shareholder spin is the kind of thing that tends to pull in event-driven money fast. (SEC)
Under the terms, Vodafone will receive €1.0 billion in cash and a 10% stake in “Ziggo Group,” while Liberty said it expects to spin off its 90% stake and list the new company in Amsterdam in 2027, subject to approvals. Vodafone said it also agreed to provide services, including brand licensing, with expected charges of €625 million over 10 years, and it can sell its 10% stake to a third party if the spin does not happen within 18 months after completion. (Vodafone)
Mike Fries, Liberty Global’s chairman and CEO, called the transaction “a significant milestone” and said it fit the company’s strategy of “unlocking long-term value for shareholders.” (SEC)
VodafoneZiggo pointed to improving commercial trends in its own update, while flagging that extra spending on network resilience and cybersecurity would weigh on earnings and capital spending in 2026. (SEC)
Liberty has pitched the deal as a fixed-mobile convergence play — bundling broadband and mobile — with synergies and incremental services it said had a combined net present value of about €1 billion, and it has talked about a path toward roughly €500 million of adjusted free cash flow by 2028. (Net present value is today’s value of future cash flows, discounted back.) (SEC)
The acquisition is expected to close in the second half of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals. Both VodafoneZiggo and Telenet would keep their brands and financing structures, Liberty has said. (TelecomTV)
The deal landed as Liberty also published fourth-quarter results, reporting revenue of $3.40 billion and adjusted EBITDA of $1.17 billion. Adjusted EBITDA is earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization, with items stripped out that companies say can blur the underlying run-rate. (Business Wire)
In the Netherlands, VodafoneZiggo has long been positioned as a national challenger to incumbent KPN, while Telenet competes in Belgium’s crowded market. Liberty is betting that putting the Benelux assets under one roof — and later listing them locally — draws a different set of investors than its U.S.-listed holding company does today. (Financial Times)
But the plan has moving parts. Regulators could slow the timetable or demand remedies, and the bigger cash-flow targets depend on execution in two highly competitive markets where pricing pressure and investment needs can shift quickly.
For Thursday’s session and the week ahead, traders will watch for early signs of financing detail, regulatory timing and any follow-on disclosures tied to the planned shareholder vote and listing steps. Liberty has said the Ziggo Group listing is targeted for 2027, with closing expected in the second half of 2026. (Investing)
