GAM Holding AG Takes $1.68 Million Position in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

GAM Holding AG acquired a new stake in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 24,450 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $1,681,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VTR. Principal Securities Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ventas by 12.4% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 5,102 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $300,000 after buying an additional 562 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in Ventas by 52.1% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,810 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $164,000 after purchasing an additional 962 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its stake in shares of Ventas by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 34,973 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,060,000 after buying an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Ventas by 17.0% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,221 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $72,000 after buying an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ventas by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 20,719 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,220,000 after buying an additional 1,724 shares during the period. 94.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ventas news, EVP Carey S. Roberts sold 23,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.23, for a total transaction of $1,509,405.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 116,650 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,492,429.50. This represents a 16.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Walter C. Rakowich sold 1,459 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.76, for a total transaction of $93,025.84. Following the transaction, the director now owns 27,454 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,750,467.04. This represents a 5.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 165,586 shares of company stock worth $10,997,929. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Ventas from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Ventas from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Ventas from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Argus set a $75.00 price target on shares of Ventas in a research report on Friday, March 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, seven 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 $73.00.

Ventas Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:VTR opened at $62.49 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $65.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $63.88. Ventas, Inc. has a 1 year low of $49.48 and a 1 year high of $71.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 189.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.32.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.32 billion. Ventas had a net margin of 2.80% and a return on equity of 1.36%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.78 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ventas Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.07%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio is presently 581.82%.

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.