Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Sells 700 Shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System cut its stake in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 3.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 22,600 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 700 shares during the quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Ventas were worth $1,331,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of Ventas by 862.7% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,932,017 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $252,160,000 after acquiring an additional 3,523,594 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings 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 period. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ventas by 4.4% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 23,364,810 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,498,385,000 after acquiring an additional 982,795 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Ventas by 2.2% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 27,557,480 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,767,261,000 after acquiring an additional 599,600 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its stake in 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 valued at $1,710,426,000 after buying an additional 581,870 shares during the period. 94.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ventas Price Performance

Shares of Ventas stock opened at $66.57 on Monday. Ventas, Inc. has a one year low of $41.45 and a one year high of $67.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market cap of $27.93 billion, a P/E ratio of -391.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.37. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $59.59 and its 200 day moving average is $61.55.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by $0.83. Ventas had a negative net margin of 1.38% and a negative return on equity of 0.69%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This is an increase from Ventas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.88%. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio is -1,058.76%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Baird R W raised Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Mizuho dropped their price target on Ventas from $71.00 to $68.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Robert W. Baird raised Ventas from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $66.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Ventas from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Ventas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. 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.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $69.14.

Ventas 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.