JPMorgan Chase & Co. Sells 2,591,848 Shares of Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut its position in shares of Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL) by 20.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,140,738 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 2,591,848 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Welltower were worth $1,278,037,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WELL. Mather Group LLC. raised its position in shares of Welltower by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 2,053 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $259,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Welltower by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,152 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $271,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Welltower by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC now owns 2,213 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $279,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. Wealthspire Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Welltower by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 3,451 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $435,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Graypoint LLC raised its holdings in Welltower by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 3,427 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $432,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.80% of the company’s stock.

Welltower Trading Up 0.3 %

WELL opened at $150.24 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 4.22, a current ratio of 4.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $145.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $135.34. The company has a market capitalization of $96.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 96.31, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.20. Welltower Inc. has a 52 week low of $87.87 and a 52 week high of $158.55.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.73. Welltower had a return on equity of 3.15% and a net margin of 11.91%. Analysts forecast that Welltower Inc. will post 4.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Welltower Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were issued a $0.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.78%. Welltower’s dividend payout ratio is currently 171.79%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on WELL shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Welltower from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Welltower from $140.00 to $158.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Welltower from $221.00 to $242.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Welltower from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $132.00 to $147.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Welltower from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $146.00 to $168.00 in a report on Friday, February 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $156.46.

Welltower Profile

Welltower Inc (NYSE:WELL), a real estate investment trust (“REIT”) and S&P 500 company headquartered in Toledo, Ohio, is driving the transformation of health care infrastructure. Welltower invests with leading seniors housing operators, post-acute providers and health systems to fund the real estate infrastructure needed to scale innovative care delivery models and improve people’s wellness and overall health care experience.