Venture Global Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:VG)

Venture Global, Inc. (NYSE:VG) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Investors bought 60,061 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 79% compared to the typical daily volume of 33,557 call options.

Venture Global Stock Down 2.4%

Shares of Venture Global stock traded down $0.34 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $13.87. 6,471,002 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 18,948,893. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.45 billion, a PE ratio of 10.92, a P/E/G ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 0.22. Venture Global has a 1-year low of $5.72 and a 1-year high of $17.62. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $12.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $12.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.44, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Venture Global (NYSE:VG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.01. Venture Global had a net margin of 21.24% and a return on equity of 34.08%. The business had revenue of $4.58 billion during the quarter. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Venture Global will post 1.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Venture Global Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be given a $0.04 dividend. This represents a $0.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This is a positive change from Venture Global’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.02. Venture Global’s dividend payout ratio is presently 5.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on VG shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Venture Global from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Venture Global from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Venture Global from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Venture Global from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $16.00 to $17.00 in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price objective on Venture Global from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Venture Global presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $16.12.

Insider Transactions at Venture Global

In other news, Director Jimmy D. Staton sold 66,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.35, for a total value of $881,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,083,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,458,050. This represents a 5.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Fory Musser sold 22,013 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.02, for a total value of $308,622.26. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 3,489,679 shares of company stock worth $46,318,890. 84.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Venture Global

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of VG. Royal Bank of Canada bought a new position in shares of Venture Global in the 1st quarter worth $2,150,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Venture Global during the 1st quarter valued at $152,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Venture Global in the 1st quarter worth about $460,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Venture Global in the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, Amundi purchased a new stake in Venture Global in the 2nd quarter valued at $213,000.

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.