MML Investors Services LLC Grows Position in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

MML Investors Services LLC grew its stake in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 15.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,976 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,690 shares during the period. MML Investors Services LLC’s holdings in Ventas were worth $1,281,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of VTR. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in Ventas by 862.7% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,932,017 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $252,160,000 after purchasing an additional 3,523,594 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in shares of Ventas by 105.2% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,420,322 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $347,605,000 after buying an additional 2,778,408 shares during the period. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Ventas during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $73,517,000. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Ventas by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 23,364,810 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,498,385,000 after buying an additional 982,795 shares during the period. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI raised its stake in shares of Ventas by 217.4% during the 2nd quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 856,525 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $43,905,000 after buying an additional 586,676 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.18% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ventas news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 121,248 shares of Ventas stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.17, for a total transaction of $8,022,980.16. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 986,717 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $65,291,063.89. The trade was a 10.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on VTR shares. Scotiabank upped their target price on Ventas from $59.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Mizuho reduced their target price on Ventas from $71.00 to $68.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $75.00 target price on shares of Ventas in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Ventas from $64.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised Ventas from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $61.00 to $71.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $65.63.

Ventas Trading Down 2.5 %

VTR opened at $58.70 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $24.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -345.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.36. Ventas, Inc. has a 52 week low of $41.45 and a 52 week high of $67.61. The business’s 50 day moving average is $63.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $59.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39.

Ventas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.07%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -1,058.82%.

About Ventas

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.