Venture Global (NYSE:VG) CFO Sells $41,986,664.88 in Stock

Venture Global, Inc. (NYSE:VG) CFO Jonathan Thayer sold 2,611,111 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.08, for a total value of $41,986,664.88. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Venture Global Trading Down 3.7%

Venture Global stock traded down $0.55 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $14.30. The company had a trading volume of 100,819,566 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,159,691. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.24, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.87. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $9.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $9.67. The firm has a market cap of $35.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.63 and a beta of 5.70. Venture Global, Inc. has a 12-month low of $5.72 and a 12-month high of $19.50.

Venture Global (NYSE:VG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 2nd. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.06. Venture Global had a return on equity of 27.96% and a net margin of 18.38%.The firm had revenue of $4.45 billion during the quarter. Venture Global’s revenue was up 191.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Venture Global, Inc. will post 0.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Venture Global Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be given a dividend of $0.018 per share. This represents a $0.07 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. This is an increase from Venture Global’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.02. Venture Global’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.14%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Venture Global

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of VG. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Venture Global by 147.4% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,862,372 shares of the company’s stock valued at $324,417,000 after buying an additional 13,620,863 shares during the period. UBS Group AG lifted its holdings in Venture Global by 520.8% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 6,279,598 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,827,000 after buying an additional 5,268,053 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. bought a new stake in Venture Global during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $76,489,000. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Venture Global by 82.7% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,812,233 shares of the company’s stock worth $73,739,000 after acquiring an additional 4,893,707 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Venture Global by 258.1% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 3,248,477 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,155,000 after acquiring an additional 2,341,253 shares during the period.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Venture Global from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 14th. New Street Research set a $15.00 target price on Venture Global in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Bank of America reduced 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. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Venture Global from $8.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Venture Global in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Venture Global has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $13.23.

Venture Global News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Venture Global this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Qatar LNG supply shock: Reports that attacks may remove ~20% of Qatar’s LNG output for up to five years lifted sentiment across U.S. LNG names, benefiting Venture Global as a potential supply alternative. Cheniere, Venture Global shares surge amid Iran attacks on Qatar LNG infrastructure
• Positive Sentiment: Big financing announced: Coverage says a roughly $8.6B financing package related to Venture Global’s growth helped drive the intraday rally by de?risking project funding and expansion plans. Venture Global (VG) Stock Jumps 14.5% Following Massive $8.6B Financing Deal
• Positive Sentiment: Project progress / market narrative: Coverage noting Venture Global’s next project moving forward combined with Middle East supply fears pushed the stock to multi?month highs as investors rotated into LNG producers. Venture Global’s next big LNG bet moves forward amid Middle East supply fears – VG stock hits 5-month high
• Neutral Sentiment: Momentum / analyst view: Short?term momentum coverage noted the 14.5% surge but warned that recent earnings?estimate revisions could limit further upside near term. Venture Global (VG) Soars 14.5%: Is Further Upside Left in the Stock?
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent financials provide support: The company beat EPS in its March quarter and reported large year?over?year revenue growth, which underpins a higher trading multiple but also contributes to elevated expectations. (Earnings release)
• Negative Sentiment: Large insider sales disclosed: CFO Jonathan W. Thayer sold 611,112 shares (avg $14.04) on 3/18 and 2,611,111 shares (avg $16.08) on 3/19; CAO Sarah Blake sold 200,000 shares (avg $16.00) on 3/19. These sizable insider dispositions are likely adding selling pressure and fueling profit?taking after the spike. SEC filing – Thayer sales SEC filing – Blake sale

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.