Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) Stake Boosted by Independent Advisor Alliance

Independent Advisor Alliance grew its stake in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 3.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,521 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 315 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance’s holdings in Ventas were worth $561,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of VTR. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ventas during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ventas by 66.2% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 527 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Promus Capital LLC bought a new stake in Ventas in the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Ventas in the fourth quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in Ventas by 1,039.4% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 809 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 738 shares in the last quarter. 94.18% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on VTR shares. Baird R W raised shares of Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Ventas from $72.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Mizuho decreased their target price on Ventas from $71.00 to $68.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Robert W. Baird raised Ventas from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $66.00 to $65.00 in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Ventas from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ventas currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.20.

Insider Activity at Ventas

In other news, CAO Gregory R. Liebbe sold 3,866 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total transaction of $243,558.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $716,373. This trade represents a 25.37 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 41,294 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.08, for a total transaction of $2,852,589.52. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,138,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $78,622,918.44. The trade was a 3.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 260,227 shares of company stock worth $17,769,097. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Ventas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VTR opened at $66.91 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $62.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $62.91. Ventas, Inc. has a twelve month low of $41.45 and a twelve month high of $71.04. The company has a market cap of $29.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 352.19, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.37.

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

Ventas Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.87%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This is a boost from Ventas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.