Venture Global (NYSE:VG) Stock Price Up 6.4% – Should You Buy?

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company set a $8.00 price objective on Venture Global in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Bank of America decreased their price target on Venture Global from $15.00 to $11.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Venture Global in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $11.00 price objective on shares of Venture Global in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Venture Global from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, November 28th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Venture Global has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $13.75.

Venture Global Trading Up 1.7%

The firm’s 50 day moving average is $7.40 and its 200 day moving average is $10.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.06 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.46.

Venture Global (NYSE:VG) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 10th. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $3.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.23 billion. Venture Global had a return on equity of 29.55% and a net margin of 21.99%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 259.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Venture Global, Inc. will post 0.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Venture Global Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Venture Global

In other Venture Global news, VP Fory Musser sold 776,298 shares of Venture Global stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.06, for a total transaction of $6,256,961.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Thomas Earl sold 1,000,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The stock was 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. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 3,000,000 shares of company stock worth $22,904,729. Corporate insiders own 86.73% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Venture Global

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Venture Global in the second quarter worth $26,000. MAI Capital Management bought a new position in Venture Global during the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Venture Global in the second quarter valued at $45,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in Venture Global by 161.2% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,949 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 1,820 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new position in shares of Venture Global during the 2nd quarter worth about $47,000.

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.