Ventas (NYSE:VTR) Raised to “Outperform” at Robert W. Baird

Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Ventas (NYSE:VTR) from a neutral rating to an outperform rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has $65.00 target price on the real estate investment trust’s stock, down from their prior target price of $66.00.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on VTR. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $75.00 target price on shares of Ventas in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Scotiabank raised their target price on Ventas from $59.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. StockNews.com raised Ventas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Ventas from $71.00 to $68.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised Ventas from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $61.00 to $71.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ventas currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $67.13.

Ventas Trading Up 0.8 %

NYSE VTR opened at $58.85 on Friday. Ventas has a 12 month low of $41.45 and a 12 month high of $67.61. The stock has a market cap of $24.69 billion, a P/E ratio of -346.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.37. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $60.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $60.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39.

Ventas Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -1,058.82%.

Insider Transactions at Ventas

In related news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 6,004 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 owns 986,717 shares in the company, valued at $65,231,860.87. The trade was a 0.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ventas

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of VTR. Signaturefd LLC raised its position 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 acquiring an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Profund Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Ventas by 3.3% in the 2nd quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 6,270 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $321,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank raised its position in shares of Ventas by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 3,308 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $195,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Ventas by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 5,639 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $362,000 after acquiring an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Ventas by 66.2% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 527 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. 94.18% of the stock is owned by 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.