Ventas (NYSE:VTR) Rating Lowered to Sell at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ventas (NYSE:VTR) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note released on Monday.

VTR has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Ventas from $64.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Ventas from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $61.00 to $71.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Ventas from $52.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Wedbush lifted their price objective on Ventas from $64.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their target price on Ventas from $59.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $63.63.

Ventas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VTR opened at $65.86 on Monday. Ventas has a 1 year low of $40.98 and a 1 year high of $66.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.66 billion, a P/E ratio of -346.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.36. The company’s 50-day moving average is $62.77 and its 200 day moving average is $54.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 0.58 and a quick ratio of 0.58.

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

Ventas Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 1st. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.73%. Ventas’s payout ratio is currently -947.37%.

Insider Activity at Ventas

In other Ventas news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 40,079 shares of Ventas stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.29, for a total transaction of $2,296,125.91. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 986,717 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $56,529,016.93. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Robert F. Probst sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 156,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,207,444.61. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 40,079 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.29, for a total value of $2,296,125.91. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 986,717 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $56,529,016.93. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 77,065 shares of company stock worth $4,526,464. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ventas

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in shares of Ventas by 2.1% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 8,120 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $521,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Profund Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Ventas by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 6,270 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $321,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ventas by 3.7% in the third quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 5,639 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $362,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its position in Ventas by 3.9% in the third quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 5,832 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $374,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in Ventas by 4.6% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 5,292 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $230,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. 94.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.