Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) Shares Purchased by Assetmark Inc.

Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 3.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 71,361 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,606 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc.’s holdings in Ventas were worth $4,202,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in shares of Ventas by 862.7% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,932,017 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $252,160,000 after purchasing an additional 3,523,594 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in shares of Ventas by 105.2% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,420,322 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $347,605,000 after purchasing an additional 2,778,408 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Ventas by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 23,364,810 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,498,385,000 after purchasing an additional 982,795 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of Ventas by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 27,557,480 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,767,261,000 after purchasing an additional 599,600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Ventas by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 26,671,227 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,710,426,000 after purchasing an additional 581,870 shares in the last quarter. 94.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ventas Price Performance

Shares of VTR opened at $67.84 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $29.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 357.09, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.37. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $62.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $62.64. 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, Inc. has a 12 month low of $41.45 and a 12 month high of $71.04.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last issued 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, research analysts forecast that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This is a positive change from Ventas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Ventas’s payout ratio is 1,010.53%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ventas news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 388 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.00, for a total transaction of $27,548.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,128,143 shares in the company, valued at approximately $80,098,153. The trade was a 0.03 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Gregory R. Liebbe sold 3,866 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total value of $243,558.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 11,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $716,373. This trade represents a 25.37 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 260,227 shares of company stock worth $17,769,097. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Mizuho cut their target price on Ventas from $71.00 to $68.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Robert W. Baird upgraded Ventas from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $66.00 to $65.00 in a report on Friday, January 17th. Wedbush boosted their price target on Ventas from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Argus upgraded Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Baird R W upgraded Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Three research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $71.38.

About Ventas

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.