FJ Capital Management LLC Raises Stake in Welltower Inc. $WELL

FJ Capital Management LLC grew its position in Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL) by 10.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,409 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 2,068 shares during the quarter. FJ Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Welltower were worth $3,280,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SouthState Corp increased its holdings in shares of Welltower by 704.8% in the first quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 169 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the period. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Welltower in the first quarter worth about $27,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Welltower in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Welltower in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Welltower in the first quarter worth about $31,000. 94.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Welltower Stock Performance

Shares of WELL stock opened at $168.37 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 4.19, a current ratio of 4.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. Welltower Inc. has a 52 week low of $119.93 and a 52 week high of $171.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $112.61 billion, a PE ratio of 95.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.93. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $160.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $153.23.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.22 by $0.06. Welltower had a net margin of 12.18% and a return on equity of 3.38%. The company had revenue of $2.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.49 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.05 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 39.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Welltower has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.060-5.14 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Welltower Inc. will post 4.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Welltower Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 12th were paid a dividend of $0.74 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 12th. This is an increase from Welltower’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Welltower’s payout ratio is presently 167.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Welltower from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen cut Welltower from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Welltower from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 27th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Welltower from $162.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Welltower in a research note on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Andrew Gundlach purchased 20,000 shares of Welltower stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 30th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $151.46 per share, with a total value of $3,029,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 20,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,029,200. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Welltower

Welltower Inc (NYSE:WELL), a real estate investment trust (“REIT”) and S&P 500 company headquartered in Toledo, Ohio, is driving the transformation of health care infrastructure. Welltower invests with leading seniors housing operators, post-acute providers and health systems to fund the real estate infrastructure needed to scale innovative care delivery models and improve people’s wellness and overall health care experience.