Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) Shares Sold by Gulf International Bank UK Ltd

Gulf International Bank UK Ltd lowered its position in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 31,335 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 277 shares during the quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd’s holdings in Ventas were worth $1,845,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its position in 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 acquiring an additional 24,300 shares during the period. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. raised its stake in shares of Ventas by 480.7% during the 3rd quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. now owns 26,214 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,681,000 after buying an additional 21,700 shares during the last quarter. Presima Securities ULC raised its stake in shares of Ventas by 38.0% during the 4th quarter. Presima Securities ULC now owns 439,942 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $25,908,000 after buying an additional 121,193 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ventas by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,904,078 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $314,499,000 after buying an additional 231,352 shares during the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in shares of Ventas by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 302,947 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $19,428,000 after buying an additional 10,134 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on VTR. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Ventas from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday. StockNews.com upgraded Ventas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Baird R W upgraded Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Robert W. Baird upgraded Ventas from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $66.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Wedbush lifted their price target on Ventas from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $71.14.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ventas news, CAO Gregory R. Liebbe sold 3,866 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total transaction of $243,558.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,371 shares in the company, valued at approximately $716,373. The trade was a 25.37 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 214,679 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.22, for a total value of $14,645,401.38. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,138,143 shares in the company, valued at approximately $77,644,115.46. This represents a 15.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Ventas Price Performance

Shares of Ventas stock opened at $69.18 on Friday. 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 twelve month low of $41.45 and a twelve month high of $69.25. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $61.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $62.26. The firm has a market cap of $30.24 billion, a PE ratio of 364.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.37.

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

Ventas Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. This is a positive change from Ventas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Ventas’s payout ratio is 1,010.53%.

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.