Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL) Shares Sold by Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lowered its position in Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL) by 64.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 131,000 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 240,855 shares during the quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund’s holdings in Welltower were worth $13,657,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WELL. First Foundation Advisors acquired a new stake in Welltower during the second quarter worth about $26,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Welltower during the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Welltower during the second quarter worth $30,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Welltower during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Centerpoint Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Welltower in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 94.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Welltower Price Performance

NYSE WELL opened at $126.46 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 4.07 and a current ratio of 4.07. The stock has a market cap of $75.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 156.12, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 1.21. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $121.15 and a 200 day simple moving average of $106.81. Welltower Inc. has a 52-week low of $79.56 and a 52-week high of $131.31.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.08. Welltower had a return on equity of 2.21% and a net margin of 8.36%. The firm had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.89 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.90 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Welltower Inc. will post 4.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Welltower Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 21st. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th were issued a dividend of $0.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.12%. This is a boost from Welltower’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.61. Welltower’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 330.86%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WELL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wolfe Research raised shares of Welltower to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Welltower from $115.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Welltower from $103.00 to $107.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective (up previously from $134.00) on shares of Welltower in a report on Tuesday. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Welltower from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 3rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $115.38.

About Welltower

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.