Townsend & Associates Inc Boosts Stake in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

Townsend & Associates Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 46,616 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 451 shares during the quarter. Townsend & Associates Inc’s holdings in Ventas were worth $2,217,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Ventas by 7.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 22,246,452 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $937,243,000 after acquiring an additional 1,483,908 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ventas by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 19,691,981 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $829,619,000 after purchasing an additional 331,019 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc increased its position in shares of Ventas by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,575,523 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $234,897,000 after purchasing an additional 173,415 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Ventas by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,321,475 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $224,194,000 after buying an additional 88,489 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Ventas by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,481,514 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $223,359,000 after buying an additional 96,716 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.18% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Ventas news, CFO Robert F. Probst sold 18,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.11, for a total transaction of $871,535.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 176,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,310,345.33. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VTR has been the subject of several recent research reports. Evercore ISI raised shares of Ventas from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, March 18th. StockNews.com cut Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $46.00 target price (down from $52.00) on shares of Ventas in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Ventas from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $48.00 to $53.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Ventas in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $60.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ventas currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.25.

Ventas Price Performance

Shares of VTR traded down $0.01 on Thursday, reaching $47.43. The stock had a trading volume of 562,306 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,371,267. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $43.53 and a 200 day moving average of $45.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.20 billion, a PE ratio of -249.68, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.25. Ventas, Inc. has a twelve month low of $39.33 and a twelve month high of $50.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43.

Ventas Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 1st were issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 28th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.80%. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -947.37%.

Ventas Company 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.