Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Buy” from the ten brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $67.13.

VTR has been the topic of several analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ventas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Ventas from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $61.00 to $71.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Baird R W raised Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $75.00 price objective on shares of Ventas in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Ventas from $59.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th.

Ventas Stock Performance

Shares of VTR stock opened at $60.75 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $60.29 and a 200-day moving average of $60.74. Ventas has a one year low of $41.45 and a one year high of $67.61. The stock has a market cap of $25.49 billion, a PE ratio of -357.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

Ventas Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.96%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio is presently -1,058.76%.

Insider Activity at Ventas

In related news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 121,248 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.17, for a total transaction of $8,022,980.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 986,717 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,291,063.89. This represents a 10.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ventas

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. bought a new stake in Ventas during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake 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 worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ventas in the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Ventas during the third quarter worth about $48,000. Finally, Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new position in Ventas during the third quarter worth approximately $64,000. Institutional investors own 94.18% of the company’s stock.

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.