Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC Buys 2,700 Shares of Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL)

Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL - Free Report) by 5.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 54,280 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 2,700 shares during the period. Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC's holdings in Welltower were worth $6,841,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Welltower during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Welltower during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in shares of Welltower during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of Welltower by 165.5% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 300 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Command Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Welltower in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. 94.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Welltower Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:WELL traded up $1.21 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $146.80. 620,637 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,858,326. The company has a current ratio of 4.22, a quick ratio of 4.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. Welltower Inc. has a 52-week low of $87.87 and a 52-week high of $158.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $95.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 94.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.93. The business's fifty day moving average is $148.01 and its 200-day moving average is $137.10.

Remove Ads

Welltower (NYSE:WELL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.73. Welltower had a net margin of 11.91% and a return on equity of 3.15%. As a group, analysts forecast that Welltower Inc. will post 4.88 EPS for the current year.

Welltower Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 25th were issued a dividend of $0.67 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.83%. Welltower's dividend payout ratio is presently 171.79%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on WELL. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Welltower from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $158.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Welltower from $221.00 to $242.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Mizuho increased their target price on Welltower from $141.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Welltower from $144.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Welltower from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $146.00 to $168.00 in a research report on Friday, February 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $156.46.

Welltower Profile

Welltower Inc NYSE: WELL, a real estate investment trust ("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 infrastructure needed to scale innovative care delivery models and improve people's wellness and overall health care experience.