Inspire Investing LLC Lowers Stake in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

Inspire Investing LLC lowered its stake in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 21.0% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 42,482 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 11,315 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC’s holdings in Ventas were worth $2,178,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Centersquare Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Ventas by 11.5% during the 1st quarter. Centersquare Investment Management LLC now owns 7,806,396 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $345,667,000 after buying an additional 802,546 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Ventas by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,931,538 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $304,047,000 after purchasing an additional 96,482 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in shares of Ventas by 8.1% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,489,159 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $239,000,000 after purchasing an additional 413,564 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Ventas during the 4th quarter valued at $231,512,000. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA bought a new position in shares of Ventas during the 2nd quarter valued at $135,425,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Ventas from $52.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Ventas to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Ventas from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Ventas from $64.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Ventas from $55.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ventas has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $57.45.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Robert F. Probst sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.87, for a total transaction of $1,177,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 156,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,207,444.61. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Peter J. Bulgarelli sold 3,784 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.24, for a total transaction of $209,028.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 104,295 shares in the company, valued at $5,761,255.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Robert F. Probst sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.87, for a total transaction of $1,177,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 156,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,207,444.61. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 77,065 shares of company stock valued at $4,526,464 over the last three months. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Ventas Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of Ventas stock opened at $64.21 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.53 billion, a PE ratio of -337.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.36. Ventas, Inc. has a 52-week low of $39.33 and a 52-week high of $65.64. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $58.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $50.75.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The real estate investment trust reported $0.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.79 by ($0.74). The firm had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.19 billion. Ventas had a negative return on equity of 1.63% and a negative net margin of 3.33%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.75 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ventas Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 1st. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.80%. Ventas’s payout ratio is -947.32%.

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.