Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) Holdings Increased by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its stake in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 20.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 307,202 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 51,838 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB owned about 0.07% of Ventas worth $18,091,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in VTR. Creative Planning raised its position in shares of Ventas by 9.5% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 52,798 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $3,386,000 after buying an additional 4,593 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in shares of Ventas by 81.2% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 104,646 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $6,711,000 after purchasing an additional 46,887 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ventas by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 20,421 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,310,000 after purchasing an additional 558 shares in the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ventas in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $246,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ventas by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 8,120 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $521,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. 94.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ventas Stock Performance

Ventas stock opened at $66.08 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $60.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $61.90. The company has a market cap of $28.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 347.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Ventas, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $41.45 and a fifty-two week high of $67.61.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.02) by $0.83. Ventas had a net margin of 1.65% and a return on equity of 0.82%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 EPS for the current year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors 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 2.91%. Ventas’s payout ratio is presently 947.42%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on VTR. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Ventas from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $66.00 to $65.00 in a report on Friday, January 17th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ventas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Ventas from $71.00 to $68.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Baird R W upgraded shares of Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Wedbush boosted their target price on shares of Ventas from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.14.

Insider Activity at Ventas

In related news, CAO Gregory R. Liebbe sold 3,866 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total transaction of $243,558.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $716,373. The trade was a 25.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Ventas

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.