Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Boosts Holdings in Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL) by 0.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,078,738 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,525 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned 0.98% of Welltower worth $766,103,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Welltower during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new position in Welltower during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Welltower during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in Welltower by 165.5% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 300 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares during the period. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Welltower during the 3rd quarter valued at about $50,000. 94.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Welltower Stock Performance

Shares of WELL stock opened at $156.91 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $136.98 and a 200-day moving average price of $131.87. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $100.63 billion, a PE ratio of 100.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.23. Welltower Inc. has a 52 week low of $87.87 and a 52 week high of $157.16.

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

Welltower Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 25th will be given a dividend of $0.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.71%. Welltower’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 171.79%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on WELL shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Welltower from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $132.00 to $147.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Welltower from $144.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Welltower from $136.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Wedbush upgraded shares of Welltower from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $145.00 to $167.00 in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Welltower from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $145.96.

Welltower Company 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.