Venture Global (NYSE:VG) Trading 6.6% Higher - What's Next?

Key Points

• Shares jumped 6.6% intraday to about $15.60 as several firms raised price targets, but the consensus rating remains a Hold with a consensus target of $15.70.
• Venture Global reported quarterly EPS of $0.41 (vs. $0.35 est.) and revenue of $4.45 billion, up 191.7% year-over-year, with analysts forecasting roughly $0.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.
• Significant insider selling has occurred recently — the CFO sold 2.61 million shares (~$42M) and insiders have disposed of about 5.87 million shares (~$82M) over the last three months.

Venture Global, Inc. (NYSE:VG - Get Free Report) shares shot up 6.6% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $15.58 and last traded at $15.6050. 9,044,893 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 57% from the average session volume of 21,264,430 shares. The stock had previously closed at $14.64.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Venture Global from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Venture Global from $9.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on Venture Global from $11.00 to $14.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, March 13th. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $13.00 target price on shares of Venture Global in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Venture Global from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $15.70.

Venture Global Trading Up 6.9%

The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.24. The firm's 50-day moving average is $11.76 and its 200 day moving average is $9.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.84.

Venture Global (NYSE:VG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 2nd. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.06. Venture Global had a net margin of 18.38% and a return on equity of 27.96%. The firm had revenue of $4.45 billion during the quarter. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 191.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Venture Global, Inc. will post 0.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Venture Global Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th were given a $0.018 dividend. This is a boost from Venture Global's previous quarterly dividend of $0.02. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 16th. This represents a $0.07 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Venture Global's dividend payout ratio is presently 8.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Jonathan W. Thayer sold 2,611,111 shares of Venture Global stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.08, for a total value of $41,986,664.88. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Thomas Earl sold 1,000,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.83, for a total transaction of $11,830,000.00. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 5,872,223 shares of company stock valued at $82,002,870 over the last three months. 86.73% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Venture Global

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VG. Royal Bank of Canada bought a new position in shares of Venture Global in the 1st quarter worth about $2,150,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in Venture Global during the first quarter worth approximately $152,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Venture Global in the first quarter worth approximately $460,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake in Venture Global by 541.8% in the second quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 7,701 shares of the company's stock valued at $120,000 after buying an additional 6,501 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. bought a new position in shares of Venture Global during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000.

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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