Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) Receives $69.14 Average Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) have received a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the nine analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, six have issued a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $69.14.

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Scotiabank upped their target price on Ventas from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Baird R W upgraded Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Mizuho lowered their target price on Ventas from $71.00 to $68.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Wedbush upped their target price on Ventas from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Ventas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th.

Ventas Stock Performance

NYSE VTR opened at $66.08 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $28.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 347.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $60.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $61.96. Ventas has a fifty-two week low of $41.45 and a fifty-two week high of $67.61.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by $0.83. Ventas had a return on equity of 0.82% and a net margin of 1.65%. Sell-side analysts predict that Ventas will post 3.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. This is a positive change from Ventas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio is currently 1,010.53%.

Insider Activity at Ventas

In other news, CAO Gregory R. Liebbe sold 3,866 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total value 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. This represents a 25.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Tandem Capital Management Corp ADV increased its holdings in shares of Ventas by 62.1% in the third quarter. Tandem Capital Management Corp ADV now owns 27,730 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,778,000 after purchasing an additional 10,620 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its holdings in Ventas by 7.9% during the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 332,300 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $21,310,000 after acquiring an additional 24,300 shares during the period. abrdn plc grew its holdings in Ventas by 28.7% during the third quarter. abrdn plc now owns 961,359 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $61,878,000 after acquiring an additional 214,384 shares during the period. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. grew its holdings in Ventas by 480.7% during the third quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. now owns 26,214 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,681,000 after acquiring an additional 21,700 shares during the period. Finally, Presima Securities ULC grew its holdings in Ventas by 38.0% during the fourth quarter. Presima Securities ULC now owns 439,942 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $25,908,000 after acquiring an additional 121,193 shares during the period. 94.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.