Venture Global (NYSE:VG) Shares Up 6.4% - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Shares rose 6.4% to $9.48 on Wednesday with volume down about 65% versus average; analysts' consensus is an average "Hold" rating with a mean price target of $13.75.
• Latest quarter showed revenue of $3.33 billion (up 259.5% year‑over‑year) but an EPS miss ($0.16 vs. $0.22 consensus), alongside strong reported profitability (net margin ~22%, ROE ~29.6%).
• The company has high leverage (debt/equity ~3.46) and weak liquidity (current ratio ~0.83), and insiders have sold about 3.0 million shares (~$22.9M) in the last 90 days even as Vanguard significantly increased its stake.

Venture Global, Inc. (NYSE:VG - Get Free Report)'s stock price shot up 6.4% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $9.48 and last traded at $9.4840. 4,489,576 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 65% from the average session volume of 12,727,235 shares. The stock had previously closed at $8.91.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. US Capital Advisors upgraded Venture Global to a "moderate sell" rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $8.00 price target on shares of Venture Global in a research report on Monday, December 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $17.50 price objective on shares of Venture Global in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Venture Global in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Capital One Financial began coverage on Venture Global in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $11.00 target price for the company. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $13.75.

Venture Global Stock Up 6.8%

The stock's 50-day moving average price is $7.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $10.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.29 billion and a P/E ratio of 12.17.

Venture Global (NYSE:VG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 10th. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.22 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $3.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.23 billion. Venture Global had a net margin of 21.99% and a return on equity of 29.55%. Venture Global's revenue for the quarter was up 259.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Venture Global, Inc. will post 0.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Venture Global Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th were given a dividend of $0.017 per share. This represents a $0.07 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. Venture Global's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Fory Musser sold 42,901 shares of Venture Global stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.80, for a total value of $334,627.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Thomas Earl sold 1,000,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.89, for a total value of $6,890,000.00. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 3,000,000 shares of company stock worth $22,904,729 over the last 90 days. 86.73% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Venture Global by 147.4% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,862,372 shares of the company's stock worth $324,417,000 after purchasing an additional 13,620,863 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. bought a new stake in Venture Global in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $76,489,000. Mather Group LLC. lifted its position in Venture Global by 171.9% in the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 460,000 shares of the company's stock worth $6,527,000 after buying an additional 1,100,000 shares during the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new position in Venture Global during the third quarter valued at approximately $13,632,000. Finally, Alps Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Venture Global during the third quarter valued at approximately $13,413,000.

About Venture Global

Venture Global NYSE: VG is a Houston-based energy company that develops, constructs and operates large-scale liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facilities in the United States. The company focuses on converting domestically produced natural gas into LNG for shipment to international markets, positioning itself as a supplier of pipeline-quality gas in vessel-ready form for global customers.

Venture Global's core activities include site development, engineering and construction of liquefaction and export terminals, commissioning and ongoing operations of those facilities, and commercial marketing of LNG under both long-term and short-term contracts.

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