Ventas (NYSE:VTR) Upgraded to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ventas (NYSE:VTR) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday morning.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the company. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $75.00 price target on shares of Ventas in a report on Thursday. Scotiabank upped their target price on Ventas from $59.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Ventas from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Ventas from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $61.00 to $71.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Ventas from $71.00 to $68.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $65.67.

Ventas Stock Performance

NYSE:VTR opened at $58.76 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $63.36 and its 200-day moving average is $59.33. The company has a market cap of $24.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -345.63, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. Ventas has a 52-week low of $41.45 and a 52-week high of $67.61.

Ventas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.06%. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -1,058.82%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 6,004 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.11, for a total value of $396,924.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 986,717 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $65,231,860.87. The trade was a 0.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ventas

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VTR. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Ventas by 2.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 26,671,227 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,710,426,000 after purchasing an additional 581,870 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in Ventas by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 23,364,810 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,498,385,000 after buying an additional 982,795 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Ventas by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,411,293 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $665,559,000 after acquiring an additional 245,922 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Ventas by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,931,538 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $304,047,000 after acquiring an additional 96,482 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in shares of Ventas by 105.2% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,420,322 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $347,605,000 after acquiring an additional 2,778,408 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.18% of the company’s stock.

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.