Venture Global (NYSE:VG) Raised to “Strong-Buy” at Zacks Research

Venture Global (NYSE:VG) was upgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report released on Thursday, Zacks reports.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on VG. Mizuho boosted their target price on Venture Global from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Scotiabank increased their price target on Venture Global from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 10th. Weiss Ratings raised Venture Global from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Venture Global from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $15.00 to $21.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 20th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Venture Global in a report on Wednesday, October 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $16.87.

Venture Global Stock Down 0.7%

VG traded down $0.09 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $13.17. The company had a trading volume of 7,851,700 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,315,318. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $13.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $12.83. Venture Global has a 52 week low of $5.72 and a 52 week high of $17.62. The company has a market capitalization of $32.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.36 and a beta of 0.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96.

Venture Global (NYSE:VG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 9th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.46. The company had revenue of $4.76 billion for the quarter. Venture Global had a net margin of 31.11% and a return on equity of 39.19%. Venture Global’s revenue for the quarter was up 42.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.16 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Venture Global will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Venture Global

In other Venture Global news, COO Brian Cothran sold 152,660 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.15, for a total transaction of $2,465,459.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Fory Musser sold 500,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.16, for a total value of $6,580,000.00. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 1,280,019 shares of company stock valued at $17,780,943 over the last ninety days. 84.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Venture Global

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ancora Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Venture Global by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 27,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $301,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Venture Global by 11.3% in the third quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 13,484 shares of the company’s stock valued at $170,000 after purchasing an additional 1,371 shares during the period. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Venture Global by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 22,054 shares of the company’s stock valued at $279,000 after buying an additional 1,442 shares in the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. boosted its holdings in Venture Global by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 40,825 shares of the company’s stock worth $516,000 after buying an additional 1,500 shares during the period. Finally, C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors boosted its holdings in Venture Global by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors now owns 17,587 shares of the company’s stock worth $222,000 after buying an additional 1,618 shares during the period.

Venture Global News Roundup

Investors following VG have been watching these news items:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks says rising earnings estimates point to potential near-term upside for VG, and the stock was added to its Rank #1 (Strong Buy) lists, including its income-stock list. Surging Earnings Estimates Signal Upside for Venture Global (VG) Stock New Strong Buy Stocks for November 13th Best Income Stocks to Buy for November 13th
• Neutral Sentiment: Venture Global has asked the U.S. Department of Energy for permission to re-export LNG from its CP2 project. Approval could add commercial flexibility, but the request remains subject to a regulatory decision. Venture Global asks DOE for approval to re-export LNG from CP2 project
• Neutral Sentiment: Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed its Market Perform rating, offering a more cautious counterpoint to the recent Buy ratings. Sanford C. Bernstein Reaffirms Market Perform Rating for Venture Global

Venture Global Company Profile

Venture Global, Inc. is a U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) company that develops, constructs and operates facilities to produce and export LNG. Its activities include sourcing natural gas, processing it into LNG and delivering the fuel to customers in international markets, often through long-term supply agreements. Founded in 2013, the company is based in Arlington, Virginia, and focuses its LNG projects on Louisiana’s Gulf Coast. Its facilities include Calcasieu Pass and Plaquemines LNG, while it is also developing additional export capacity, including the proposed CP2 project.