Ventas (NYSE:VTR) Reaches New 12-Month High – Here’s What Happened

Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $71.12 and last traded at $69.98, with a volume of 405451 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $69.39.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on VTR. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Ventas from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Ventas from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Baird R W raised Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Ventas from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ventas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.90.

Ventas Trading Down 5.8 %

The business’s 50 day moving average price is $65.89 and its 200-day moving average price is $63.40. The company has a market cap of $28.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 345.01, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by $0.83. Ventas had a net margin of 1.65% and a return on equity of 0.82%. On average, research analysts forecast that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 EPS for the current year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.93%. This is a boost from Ventas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio is 1,010.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ventas

In related news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 388 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.00, for a total transaction of $27,548.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,128,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $80,098,153. This trade represents a 0.03 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Gregory R. Liebbe sold 3,866 shares of Ventas stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total value of $243,558.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 11,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $716,373. The trade was a 25.37 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 260,227 shares of company stock valued at $17,769,097. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ventas

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Presima Securities ULC grew its stake in shares of Ventas by 38.0% during the fourth quarter. Presima Securities ULC now owns 439,942 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $25,908,000 after purchasing an additional 121,193 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its position in Ventas by 48.4% in the fourth quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 39,760 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,341,000 after purchasing an additional 12,969 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Ventas by 726.8% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,267 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $310,000 after purchasing an additional 4,630 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Ventas by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,028,015 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $296,100,000 after purchasing an additional 123,937 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Ventas by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 27,557,480 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,767,261,000 after purchasing an additional 599,600 shares during the last quarter. 94.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ventas Company Profile

Ventas Inc (NYSE: VTR) is a leading S&P 500 real estate investment trust focused on delivering strong, sustainable shareholder returns by enabling exceptional environments that benefit a large and growing aging population. The Company's growth is fueled by its senior housing communities, which provide valuable services to residents and enable them to thrive in supported environments.