Ventas (NYSE:VTR) Sets New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on VTR shares. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Ventas from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. StockNews.com raised shares of Ventas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Ventas from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Ventas from $72.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Ventas from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Four investment 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ventas has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.90.

Ventas Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $30.97 billion, a PE ratio of 372.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The business’s 50 day moving average is $65.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $63.35.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 EPS for the current year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.71%. 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 (DPR) is currently 1,010.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Gregory R. Liebbe sold 3,866 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total transaction of $243,558.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $716,373. This trade represents a 25.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 41,294 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.08, for a total value of $2,852,589.52. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,138,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $78,622,918.44. This trade represents a 3.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 260,227 shares of company stock worth $17,769,097 in the last quarter. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ventas

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Ventas in the fourth quarter worth approximately $340,282,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Ventas by 60.8% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,207,553 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $365,563,000 after buying an additional 2,347,705 shares during the period. Rush Island Management LP grew its holdings in Ventas by 130.6% in the 4th quarter. Rush Island Management LP now owns 3,097,830 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $182,431,000 after acquiring an additional 1,754,494 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in shares of Ventas by 1,489.5% in the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,456,112 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $85,750,000 after acquiring an additional 1,364,504 shares during the period. Finally, Zimmer Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Ventas in the fourth quarter valued at about $67,719,000. 94.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.