Vert Asset Management LLC Acquires 16,935 Shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

Vert Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 9.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 198,184 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,935 shares during the period. Ventas makes up 4.7% of Vert Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Vert Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Ventas were worth $13,627,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Franchise Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in Ventas in the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ventas during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Ventas by 1,039.4% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 809 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 738 shares in the last quarter. Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in Ventas in the 4th quarter worth about $48,000. Finally, State of Wyoming increased its position in shares of Ventas by 32.5% during the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 975 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.18% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ventas news, EVP Carey S. Roberts sold 23,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.23, for a total value of $1,509,405.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 116,650 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,492,429.50. This trade represents a 16.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Robert F. Probst sold 17,374 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.22, for a total transaction of $1,133,132.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 168,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,980,700.08. This trade represents a 9.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 165,586 shares of company stock worth $10,997,929 in the last three months. 0.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Ventas Price Performance

Shares of Ventas stock opened at $63.65 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $28.72 billion, a PE ratio of 335.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.89. Ventas, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $49.26 and a fifty-two week high of $71.36. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $65.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $63.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.02. Ventas had a return on equity of 0.82% and a net margin of 1.65%. The company had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.32 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.78 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 EPS for the current year.

Ventas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.02%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 581.82%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on VTR. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Ventas from $72.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Wedbush raised their price objective on Ventas from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. 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 research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Ventas from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $73.00.

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.