Welltower (NYSE:WELL) Reaches New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $236.06 and last traded at $235.4450, with a volume of 4128780 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $236.06.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WELL has been the topic of several research reports. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on shares of Welltower from $248.00 to $232.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Welltower in a report on Tuesday. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $254.00 target price for the company. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Welltower from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Welltower from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Welltower from $228.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $233.50.

Welltower Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $167.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 117.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a current ratio of 4.31, a quick ratio of 4.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $215.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $204.14.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.34. Welltower had a return on equity of 3.45% and a net margin of 11.96%.The company had revenue of $3.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.20 EPS. Welltower’s quarterly revenue was up 38.3% on a year-over-year basis. Welltower has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.210-6.350 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Welltower Inc. will post 6.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Welltower Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th were issued a $0.74 dividend. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 13th. Welltower’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 146.53%.

Institutional Trading of Welltower

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WELL. Leonteq Securities AG boosted its position in shares of Welltower by 92.3% during the 1st quarter. Leonteq Securities AG now owns 125 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its stake in Welltower by 124.6% during the first quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 137 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Welltower by 62.8% during the fourth quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 153 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Swiss RE Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Welltower in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Welltower in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors own 94.80% of the company’s stock.

About Welltower

Welltower Inc (NYSE: WELL) is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires and manages real estate serving the health care industry. The company specializes in healthcare infrastructure, owning and operating a diversified portfolio of senior housing, post-acute and long-term care communities, and outpatient medical properties. Welltower’s assets are designed to support the delivery of health care services through a combination of leased properties, joint ventures, and other capital arrangements with health care operators and providers.

The company’s property types include assisted living, memory care, independent living and skilled nursing facilities, as well as medical office buildings and other outpatient-care real estate such as ambulatory surgery centers and specialty clinics.