(Bloomberg) — Venture Global Inc. is approaching its first corporate earnings call as a public company bearing a dubious distinction: it is the worst-performing large energy IPO in at least the last 30 years.
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The liquefied natural gas producer, which had to scale back its initial public offering amid investor pushback, is due to report quarterly earnings before markets open on Thursday. Venture Global is likely to face questions about its next steps.
“It ranks among the worst large energy IPOs ever,” said Josef Schuster, founder and chief executive officer of Ipox Schuster LLC, which tracks the performance of IPOs and offers IPO-linked exchange traded funds.
Indeed, Venture Global’s stock fell on the day it debuted and then posted the worst first month of trading of any energy-sector IPO over $1.5 billion since at least 1993, falling 39%, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
Schuster called February a “tough month” for new listings. His IPOX 100 fund, which tracks the firm’s index of recent debuts, fell 2% during the month, while shares of Venture Global declined 26% in the same period.
Venture Global issued a smaller share of its combined float than Saudi Aramco did when it went public, Schuster said. The small number of shares offered, combined with a dual class share structure and the ambitious valuation the company originally sought, have created headwinds for the stock since its debut, he said.
Ahead of earnings, Wall Street analysts expect Venture Global to continue trading below its IPO price. The average price target on the stock is $21 apiece, which is below its $25 per share offering price.
Still, there are some potential catalysts for the stock including the chance President Donald Trump’s administration will grant Venture Global approvals for a sprawling LNG export facility in Louisiana called CP2. The government approved a permit extension for Exxon Mobil Corp.’s Golden Pass LNG facility on Wednesday and there is optimism that additional approvals may follow.
The Street will be looking for updates on CP2 and commentary on how the Trump administration is changing the regulatory environment for LNG exporters, said Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Talon Custer.
Still there are some potential issues that could weigh on the stock. Custer said he’s also looking for Ebitda guidance this year “and how it will differ from prior year with less lucrative long-term contracts starting” at its Calcasieu Pass facility.
