Vanguard Group Inc. Has $3.92 Billion Stock Holdings in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 66,501,010 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 912,813 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 15.85% of Ventas worth $3,916,244,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its position in shares of Ventas by 7.9% during the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 332,300 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $21,310,000 after buying an additional 24,300 shares during the period. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. raised its stake in Ventas by 480.7% during the third quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. now owns 26,214 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,681,000 after acquiring an additional 21,700 shares in the last quarter. Presima Securities ULC lifted its holdings in shares of Ventas by 38.0% during the fourth quarter. Presima Securities ULC now owns 439,942 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $25,908,000 after acquiring an additional 121,193 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ventas by 726.8% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,267 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $310,000 after purchasing an additional 4,630 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ventas by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,028,015 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $296,100,000 after purchasing an additional 123,937 shares during the last quarter. 94.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VTR has been the subject of several analyst reports. Baird R W raised shares of Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Argus set a $75.00 target price on Ventas in a report on Friday, March 7th. Scotiabank raised their price target on Ventas from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Ventas from $72.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Ventas from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.90.

Insider Transactions at Ventas

In other Ventas news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 388 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.00, for a total transaction of $27,548.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,128,143 shares in the company, valued at approximately $80,098,153. This trade represents a 0.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Gregory R. Liebbe sold 3,866 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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. The trade was a 25.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 260,227 shares of company stock worth $17,769,097 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Ventas Price Performance

Shares of VTR stock opened at $68.18 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. Ventas, Inc. has a 12 month low of $41.45 and a 12 month high of $71.04. The firm has a market cap of $29.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 358.87, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.37. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $64.21 and a 200 day moving average price of $63.15.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.02) by $0.83. Ventas had a net margin of 1.65% and a return on equity of 0.82%. Research analysts expect that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 EPS for the current year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.82%. This is an increase from Ventas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio is 1,010.53%.

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.