CareTrust REIT (NASDAQ:CTRE) Upgraded by Wells Fargo & Company to “Overweight”

Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of CareTrust REIT (NASDAQ:CTRE) from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating in a research note released on Tuesday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has $34.00 price target on the real estate investment trust’s stock, up from their prior price target of $28.00.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on CareTrust REIT from $23.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a report on Monday, July 1st. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on CareTrust REIT from $27.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $29.00.

CareTrust REIT Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CTRE opened at $30.84 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 13.37 and a current ratio of 13.37. The firm has a market cap of $4.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 59.31 and a beta of 1.10. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $28.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $26.36. CareTrust REIT has a 52 week low of $19.87 and a 52 week high of $31.51.

CareTrust REIT (NASDAQ:CTRE) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The real estate investment trust reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.29). CareTrust REIT had a net margin of 30.09% and a return on equity of 4.84%. The business had revenue of $68.89 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $66.36 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.35 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that CareTrust REIT will post 1.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CareTrust REIT Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.76%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. CareTrust REIT’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 223.08%.

Insider Activity at CareTrust REIT

In related news, CFO William M. Wagner sold 35,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.80, for a total value of $1,043,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 257,439 shares in the company, valued at $7,671,682.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.75% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CareTrust REIT

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. United Services Automobile Association boosted its position in shares of CareTrust REIT by 5.0% during the second quarter. United Services Automobile Association now owns 11,244 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $282,000 after buying an additional 540 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of CareTrust REIT by 4.1% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 22,946 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $559,000 after purchasing an additional 895 shares during the period. Creative Planning increased its stake in shares of CareTrust REIT by 3.1% during the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 35,330 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $887,000 after purchasing an additional 1,071 shares during the period. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in CareTrust REIT during the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in CareTrust REIT by 187.7% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,752 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 1,143 shares during the period. 87.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About CareTrust REIT

CareTrust REIT, Inc’s (CareTrust REIT or the Company) primary business consists of acquiring, financing, developing and owning real property to be leased to third-party tenants in the healthcare sector. As of March 31, 2024, the Company owned directly or through a joint venture and leased to independent operators, 228 skilled nursing facilities (SNFs), multi-service campuses, assisted living facilities (ALFs) and independent living facilities (ILFs) consisting of 24,189 operational beds and units located in 29 states with the highest concentration of properties by rental income located in California and Texas.