Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) Stock Position Decreased by Blue Trust Inc.

Blue Trust Inc. lowered its position in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR - Free Report) by 49.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,073 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 4,054 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.'s holdings in Ventas were worth $240,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VTR. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ventas in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Ventas by 66.2% during the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 527 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the period. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Ventas during the fourth quarter worth $41,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Ventas during the third quarter worth $48,000. Finally, Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in Ventas during the third quarter worth $64,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.18% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on VTR. Scotiabank increased their target price on Ventas from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com upgraded Ventas from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Robert W. Baird upgraded Ventas from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $66.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Wedbush raised 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. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price objective on Ventas from $71.00 to $68.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $69.14.

Ventas Stock Performance

NYSE:VTR traded down $1.07 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $65.78. The stock had a trading volume of 871,577 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,516,730. Ventas, Inc. has a 52 week low of $41.45 and a 52 week high of $67.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 345.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $60.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $61.82.

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

Ventas Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This is a positive change from Ventas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Ventas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 947.42%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ventas news, CAO Gregory R. Liebbe sold 3,866 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total transaction of $243,558.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,371 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $716,373. This trade represents a 25.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Ventas 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.