Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) Stock Position Raised by Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co

Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co boosted its position in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 19.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 42,857 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,903 shares during the period. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in Ventas were worth $2,524,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of VTR. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in Ventas by 54.2% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 29,495 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,892,000 after purchasing an additional 10,365 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Ventas in the third quarter worth $241,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in Ventas by 3.5% during the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 302,947 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $19,428,000 after acquiring an additional 10,134 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its stake in Ventas by 0.8% during the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 34,801 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,232,000 after buying an additional 288 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of Ventas in the 3rd quarter valued at $80,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.18% of the company’s stock.

Ventas Stock Performance

NYSE VTR opened at $68.74 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $64.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $63.28. The stock has a market cap of $30.05 billion, a PE ratio of 361.81, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. Ventas, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $41.45 and a fifty-two week high of $71.04.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 0.82% and a net margin of 1.65%. On average, equities analysts expect that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. This is a positive change from Ventas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.79%. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio is presently 1,010.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on VTR shares. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Ventas from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $66.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Friday, January 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Ventas from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Ventas from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Ventas from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Wedbush increased their price target on Ventas from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ventas currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.90.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 41,294 shares of Ventas stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.08, for a total transaction of $2,852,589.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,138,143 shares in the company, valued at $78,622,918.44. This trade represents a 3.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Gregory R. Liebbe sold 3,866 shares of Ventas stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total value of $243,558.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,371 shares in the company, valued at approximately $716,373. The trade was a 25.37 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 260,227 shares of company stock valued at $17,769,097 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Ventas 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.