First Affirmative Financial Network Takes Position in Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL)

First Affirmative Financial Network bought a new position in Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL) during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 1,838 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $235,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WELL. First Foundation Advisors bought a new position in shares of Welltower in the second quarter worth about $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Welltower during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Welltower in the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Welltower in the second quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Manchester Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Welltower by 338.7% during the 1st quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 329 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 254 shares during the period. 94.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WELL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Welltower from $106.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Welltower from $115.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Wolfe Research raised Welltower to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Welltower from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $135.00 target price (up previously from $134.00) on shares of Welltower in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $115.38.

Welltower Price Performance

WELL stock opened at $125.18 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $122.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $108.26. Welltower Inc. has a 52 week low of $80.80 and a 52 week high of $131.31. The company has a quick ratio of 4.07, a current ratio of 4.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 154.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.21.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.08. Welltower had a return on equity of 2.21% and a net margin of 8.36%. The company had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.89 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.90 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Welltower Inc. will post 4.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Welltower Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 12th were paid a $0.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.14%. This is an increase from Welltower’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.61. Welltower’s dividend payout ratio is currently 330.86%.

About Welltower

Welltower Inc (NYSE:WELL), a REIT and S&P 500 company headquartered in Toledo, Ohio, is driving the transformation of health care infrastructure. Welltower invests with leading seniors housing operators, post-acute providers and health systems to fund the real estate and infrastructure needed to scale innovative care delivery models and improve people's wellness and overall health care experience.