B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG Has $1.17 Million Position in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG lessened its holdings in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 6.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,865 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 1,423 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG’s holdings in Ventas were worth $1,170,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its position in Ventas by 17.5% in the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,335,585 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $78,653,000 after acquiring an additional 198,974 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ventas by 116.6% in the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 127,874 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $7,530,000 after purchasing an additional 68,843 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ventas by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 6,546 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $381,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System increased its position in shares of Ventas by 60.2% during the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 1,137,654 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $66,996,000 after purchasing an additional 427,440 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group increased its position in shares of Ventas by 23.3% during the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,400,970 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $141,393,000 after purchasing an additional 453,425 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.18% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Ventas

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

Ventas Price Performance

Shares of VTR stock opened at $69.59 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. Ventas, Inc. has a 12 month low of $41.45 and a 12 month high of $71.36. The firm has a market cap of $30.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 366.26, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.37. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $65.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $63.39.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.02) by $0.83. Ventas had a net margin of 1.65% and a return on equity of 0.82%. Research analysts expect that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 EPS for the current year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.76%. This is a boost from Ventas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 1,010.53%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on VTR shares. Baird R W raised shares of Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Mizuho increased their price target on Ventas from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Ventas from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. StockNews.com upgraded Ventas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Argus set a $75.00 price target on Ventas in a report on Friday, March 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.90.

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.