Stifel Financial Corp Increases Stock Holdings in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

Stifel Financial Corp boosted its position in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 6.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 34,593 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,985 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp’s holdings in Ventas were worth $2,219,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ventas by 862.7% in the 3rd 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 purchasing an additional 3,523,594 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in Ventas by 105.2% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,420,322 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $347,605,000 after buying an additional 2,778,408 shares during the period. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd acquired a new position in Ventas in the second quarter valued at about $73,517,000. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Ventas by 4.4% during 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 buying an additional 982,795 shares during the period. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI increased its position in shares of Ventas by 217.4% during the second quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 856,525 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $43,905,000 after acquiring an additional 586,676 shares during the last quarter. 94.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VTR has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Mizuho lowered their price target on Ventas from $71.00 to $68.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. 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 report on Tuesday, October 1st. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Ventas from $64.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $75.00 target price on shares of Ventas in a research report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ventas presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $65.63.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ventas

In other news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 6,004 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.11, for a total transaction 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Ventas Stock Performance

Shares of Ventas stock opened at $57.73 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $63.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $59.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. Ventas, Inc. has a one year low of $41.45 and a one year high of $67.61. The company has a market cap of $24.22 billion, a PE ratio of -339.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.36.

Ventas Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -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.