Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) CEO Debra A. Cafaro Sells 41,294 Shares

Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 41,294 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.08, for a total value of $2,852,589.52. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,138,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $78,622,918.44. The trade was a 3.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Ventas Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:VTR opened at $69.95 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The business has a fifty day moving average of $61.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $62.46. The stock has a market cap of $30.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 368.15, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.37. Ventas, Inc. has a 52-week low of $41.45 and a 52-week high of $71.08.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by $0.83. Ventas had a return on equity of 0.82% and a net margin of 1.65%. On average, research analysts expect that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.48 dividend. This is a boost from Ventas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio is presently 1,010.53%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Baird R W raised Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Mizuho reduced their target price on Ventas from $71.00 to $68.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Wedbush increased their price objective on Ventas from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Robert W. Baird raised Ventas from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $66.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Ventas from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ventas presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $71.14.

Institutional Trading of Ventas

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ventas during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ventas by 66.2% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 527 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the period. Promus Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ventas during the 4th quarter worth $38,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ventas during the 4th quarter worth $41,000. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ventas by 1,039.4% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 809 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 738 shares during the period. 94.18% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.