Debra A. Cafaro Sells 44,551 Shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) Stock

Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 44,551 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.06, for a total transaction of $3,165,794.06. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,145,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $81,413,086.70. This represents a 3.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Ventas Stock Performance

Shares of VTR stock opened at $63.38 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $66.06 and a 200 day moving average of $63.41. Ventas, Inc. has a 1 year low of $41.45 and a 1 year high of $71.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 333.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.02.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.02) by $0.83. Ventas had a return on equity of 0.82% and a net margin of 1.65%. As a group, research analysts expect that Ventas, Inc. 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 issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This is a boost from Ventas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 1,010.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Ventas from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Baird R W upgraded Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Ventas from $72.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Robert W. Baird raised shares of Ventas from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $66.00 to $65.00 in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Argus set a $75.00 target price on shares of Ventas in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.90.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ventas

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VTR. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ventas in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Franchise Capital Ltd purchased a new position in Ventas during the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Ventas by 66.2% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 527 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the period. Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Ventas in the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ventas during the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. 94.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.