Venture Global (NYSE:VG) Shares Up 5.8% – Still a Buy?

Venture Global, Inc. (NYSE:VG) traded up 5.8% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $10.73 and last traded at $10.70. 1,747,588 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 77% from the average session volume of 7,685,940 shares. The stock had previously closed at $10.11.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on VG shares. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed a “reduce” rating on shares of Venture Global in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Mizuho decreased their target price on Venture Global from $25.00 to $18.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Venture Global from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 5th. StockNews.com lowered Venture Global from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, March 15th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Venture Global in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $20.00 target price on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $15.63.

Venture Global Stock Up 4.5%

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $9.39.

Venture Global (NYSE:VG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 13th. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $2.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.83 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Venture Global, Inc. will post 0.52 EPS for the current year.

Venture Global Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $0.0165 dividend. This represents a $0.07 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Venture Global news, insider Robert B. Pender purchased 250,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $9.37 per share, for a total transaction of $2,342,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 250,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,342,500. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Michael Sabel purchased 234,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $10.53 per share, for a total transaction of $2,469,285.00. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 1,185,885 shares in the company, valued at $12,487,369.05. This represents a 24.65% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired 803,000 shares of company stock valued at $8,108,260 over the last three months. 86.73% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Venture Global

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. CenterBook Partners LP bought a new position in Venture Global in the 1st quarter valued at $4,484,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Venture Global during the 1st quarter worth about $156,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Venture Global in the 1st quarter valued at about $14,285,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Venture Global during the 1st quarter worth approximately $247,000. Finally, Summit Trail Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Venture Global in the first quarter valued at approximately $114,000.

About Venture Global

Venture Global has fundamentally reshaped the development and construction of liquefied natural gas production, establishing us as a rapidly growing company delivering critical LNG to the world. Our innovative and disruptive approach, which is both scalable and repeatable, allows us to bring LNG to a global market years faster and at a lower cost.