Venture Global (NYSE:VG) Stock Price Up 4.9% - Here's Why

Key Points

• Venture Global shares jumped 4.9% to about $6.94 on Tuesday, with roughly 9.3 million shares traded—about 14% above average volume.
• Analysts are mixed: the consensus rating is a "Hold" with an average price target of $14.25 after several firms cut targets, while individual ratings range from Buy to Sell.
• The company posted revenue up 259.5% year‑over‑year but missed EPS estimates, carries high leverage (debt/equity 3.46), declared a quarterly dividend (~1.0% yield), and has seen recent large insider stock sales.

Venture Global, Inc. (NYSE:VG - Get Free Report)'s stock price shot up 4.9% on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $6.94 and last traded at $6.9350. 9,304,775 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 14% from the average session volume of 8,189,330 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.61.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Scotiabank cut their price target on shares of Venture Global from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $8.00 price target on Venture Global in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Venture Global in a report on Monday, December 15th. Zacks Research cut shares of Venture Global from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Friday, November 28th. Finally, Mizuho restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $12.00 price target (down from $17.00) on shares of Venture Global in a research report on Friday, October 10th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $14.25.

Venture Global Price Performance

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 cap of $17.22 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.02. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $7.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $12.16.

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

Venture Global Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be given a $0.017 dividend. This represents a $0.07 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 15th. Venture Global's dividend payout ratio is currently 8.97%.

Insider Transactions at Venture Global

In other news, VP Fory Musser sold 776,298 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.06, for a total value of $6,256,961.88. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Thomas Earl sold 1,000,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.89, for a total transaction of $6,890,000.00. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 3,000,000 shares of company stock valued at $22,904,729. Insiders own 86.73% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Venture Global by 147.4% during the 3rd 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 period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. acquired a new stake in Venture Global in the 2nd quarter valued at about $76,489,000. Millennium Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Venture Global in the 1st quarter valued at $32,099,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Venture Global during the 1st quarter worth about $20,085,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Venture Global by 24.8% during the 2nd quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,731,290 shares of the company's stock worth $26,973,000 after buying an additional 344,390 shares during the last quarter.

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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