Wedbush Has Pessimistic Outlook of Ventas FY2024 Earnings

Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) – Wedbush reduced their FY2024 EPS estimates for shares of Ventas in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, December 3rd. Wedbush analyst R. Anderson now anticipates that the real estate investment trust will post earnings per share of $3.10 for the year, down from their previous estimate of $3.18. Wedbush currently has a “Outperform” rating and a $75.00 target price on the stock. The consensus estimate for Ventas’ current full-year earnings is $3.17 per share. Wedbush also issued estimates for Ventas’ Q1 2025 earnings at $0.79 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $0.82 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $0.86 EPS and Q4 2025 earnings at $0.89 EPS.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Ventas from $52.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Ventas from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $61.00 to $71.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ventas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of Ventas from $71.00 to $68.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Finally, Wolfe Research raised shares of Ventas to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $65.63.

Ventas Price Performance

VTR opened at $61.65 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.86 billion, a P/E ratio of -362.62, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.36. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $64.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $58.38. Ventas has a 12-month low of $41.45 and a 12-month high of $67.61.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ventas

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. First Community Trust NA bought a new position in shares of Ventas during the second quarter valued at $25,000. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ventas in the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Ventas in the 3rd quarter worth $48,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Ventas in the second quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial bought a new position in shares of Ventas in the second quarter worth approximately $51,000. 94.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Peter J. Bulgarelli sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.99, for a total value of $389,940.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 90,795 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,900,767.05. This represents a 6.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 6,004 shares of Ventas stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.11, for a total value of $396,924.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 986,717 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,231,860.87. This represents a 0.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 133,252 shares of company stock worth $8,809,845 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Ventas Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st were given a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 1st. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.92%. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio is currently -1,058.82%.

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.