Venture Global (NYSE:VG) Downgraded by Zacks Research to “Hold”

Zacks Research cut shares of Venture Global (NYSE:VG) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other analysts have also weighed in on VG. Citigroup upgraded shares of Venture Global from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $12.00 to $17.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Venture Global from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Venture Global from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $16.00 to $17.00 in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Venture Global from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Venture Global from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $16.12.

Venture Global Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of VG stock opened at $13.54 on Wednesday. Venture Global has a one year low of $5.72 and a one year high of $17.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.40, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $12.52 and a 200 day moving average price of $12.38. The stock has a market cap of $33.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 0.22.

Venture Global (NYSE:VG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.01. Venture Global had a net margin of 21.24% and a return on equity of 35.79%. The firm had revenue of $4.58 billion for the quarter. Analysts predict that Venture Global will post 1.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Venture Global Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a $0.04 dividend. This represents a $0.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This is an increase from Venture Global’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.02. Venture Global’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.78%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Brian Cothran sold 31,910 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.33, for a total transaction of $457,270.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Jonathan W. Thayer sold 111,111 shares of Venture Global stock in a transaction on Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.21, for a total value of $1,578,887.31. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 2,459,399 shares of company stock valued at $32,490,384 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 84.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. acquired a new position in shares of Venture Global during the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Venture Global in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Harbour Investments Inc. bought a new position in Venture Global in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its position in Venture Global by 218.1% in the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 4,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 3,031 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its holdings in Venture Global by 217.5% during the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 6,230 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 4,268 shares in the last quarter.

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.