Westpac Banking Corp Sells 8,820 Shares of Welltower Inc. $WELL

Westpac Banking Corp decreased its holdings in shares of Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL) by 10.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 75,991 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 8,820 shares during the quarter. Welltower accounts for about 0.8% of Westpac Banking Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in Welltower were worth $11,682,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WELL. SouthState Corp grew its position in Welltower by 704.8% in the 1st quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 169 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Welltower during the first quarter valued at $27,000. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Welltower in the first quarter worth about $32,000. WPG Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Welltower in the first quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Saudi Central Bank purchased a new position in Welltower in the 1st quarter worth about $38,000. 94.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Welltower Trading Up 1.5%

NYSE:WELL opened at $193.86 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $133.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 133.69, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.92. Welltower Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.11 and a 52 week high of $194.83. The company has a quick ratio of 4.19, a current ratio of 5.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $176.02 and a 200 day moving average of $163.63.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 27th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $2.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.70 billion. Welltower had a net margin of 9.69% and a return on equity of 2.71%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 30.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.11 earnings per share. Welltower has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.240-5.300 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Welltower Inc. will post 4.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Welltower Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 11th will be paid a $0.74 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 10th. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Welltower’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 204.14%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on WELL shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Welltower from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price target on Welltower from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. UBS Group set a $203.00 price objective on Welltower in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Welltower in a report on Thursday. Finally, Loop Capital set a $196.00 price target on Welltower in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $190.07.

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.