Amundi Boosts Stake in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

Amundi lifted its stake in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 1.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,306,904 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 24,483 shares during the period. Amundi owned 0.31% of Ventas worth $76,153,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Naviter Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Ventas by 10.3% in the 4th quarter. Naviter Wealth LLC now owns 29,969 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,778,000 after purchasing an additional 2,792 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ventas by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 61,702 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $3,634,000 after purchasing an additional 1,650 shares in the last quarter. Machina Capital S.A.S. purchased a new stake in shares of Ventas in the 4th quarter worth $1,113,000. Andra AP fonden increased its stake in shares of Ventas by 59.6% in the 4th quarter. Andra AP fonden now owns 263,000 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $15,488,000 after purchasing an additional 98,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Ventas in the 4th quarter worth $663,000. 94.18% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ventas Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of Ventas stock opened at $66.60 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $29.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 350.53, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.37. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $62.49 and a 200-day moving average price of $62.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. Ventas, Inc. has a twelve month low of $41.45 and a twelve month high of $71.04.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.48 dividend. This is an increase from Ventas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.88%. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 1,010.53%.

Insider Activity at Ventas

In related news, CAO Gregory R. Liebbe sold 3,866 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total value of $243,558.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 11,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $716,373. This trade represents a 25.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 41,294 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.08, for a total transaction of $2,852,589.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,138,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $78,622,918.44. The trade was a 3.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 260,227 shares of company stock valued at $17,769,097. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Ventas from $72.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Ventas from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Scotiabank increased their price target on Ventas from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Mizuho cut their price target on Ventas from $71.00 to $68.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Ventas from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.20.

Ventas Profile

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.