Ventas (NYSE:VTR) Lifted to “Overweight” at Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Ventas (NYSE:VTR) from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating in a research note released on Tuesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has $71.00 price target on the real estate investment trust’s stock, up from their prior price target of $61.00.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on VTR. StockNews.com raised shares of Ventas from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Ventas from $64.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Ventas from $55.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a sector perform rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Wedbush increased their price objective on Ventas from $64.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Ventas from $52.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $61.11.

Ventas Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of VTR stock opened at $62.57 on Tuesday. Ventas has a 52-week low of $39.33 and a 52-week high of $65.64. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $60.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $52.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.58. The company has a market capitalization of $25.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -329.30, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 1.36.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The real estate investment trust reported $0.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.79 by ($0.74). The business had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.19 billion. Ventas had a negative net margin of 3.33% and a negative return on equity of 1.63%. The business’s revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.75 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Ventas will post 3.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ventas Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 1st. Ventas’s payout ratio is presently -947.32%.

Insider Transactions at Ventas

In related news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 40,079 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.29, for a total transaction of $2,296,125.91. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 986,717 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $56,529,016.93. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Ventas news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 40,079 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.29, for a total value of $2,296,125.91. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 986,717 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,529,016.93. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Robert F. Probst sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.87, for a total transaction of $1,177,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 156,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,207,444.61. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 77,065 shares of company stock valued at $4,526,464. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ventas

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Ventas by 9.4% in the fourth quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 29,857 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,488,000 after purchasing an additional 2,570 shares during the last quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ventas by 38.3% in the 4th quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 11,539 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $562,000 after buying an additional 3,195 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Ventas by 19.2% during the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,493 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $124,000 after buying an additional 402 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its holdings in shares of Ventas by 31.7% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 53,703 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,676,000 after acquiring an additional 12,923 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its position in Ventas by 88.8% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 121,057 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $6,033,000 after acquiring an additional 56,930 shares in the last quarter. 94.18% of the stock is currently owned by 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.