Welltower (NYSE:WELL) Lowered to “Sell” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Welltower (NYSE:WELL) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note released on Sunday morning.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on WELL. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Welltower in a report on Monday, March 18th. They issued an outperform rating and a $104.00 target price on the stock. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Welltower from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Welltower from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Welltower from $96.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a sector outperform rating in a report on Thursday, May 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Welltower currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $98.07.

Welltower Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of Welltower stock opened at $104.25 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $62.33 billion, a PE ratio of 128.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 3.83 and a quick ratio of 3.83. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $100.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $94.05. Welltower has a 52-week low of $77.90 and a 52-week high of $105.69.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.94 by ($0.72). The business had revenue of $1.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.81 billion. Welltower had a net margin of 6.37% and a return on equity of 1.77%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 19.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.85 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Welltower will post 4.12 EPS for the current year.

Welltower Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 13th were given a dividend of $0.61 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 10th. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.34%. Welltower’s payout ratio is presently 301.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Welltower

In other Welltower news, Director Kenneth J. Bacon sold 1,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.91, for a total transaction of $187,038.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,579 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,514,903.89. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Welltower

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WELL. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Welltower in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Welltower in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Manchester Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Welltower by 338.7% in the 1st quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 329 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 254 shares during the period. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Welltower during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Welltower during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. 94.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Welltower Company Profile

Welltower Inc (NYSE:WELL), a 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 and infrastructure needed to scale innovative care delivery models and improve people's wellness and overall health care experience.