Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) Position Increased by Employees Retirement System of Texas

Employees Retirement System of Texas raised its holdings in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR - Free Report) by 21.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 257,899 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 45,500 shares during the period. Employees Retirement System of Texas owned 0.06% of Ventas worth $15,188,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of VTR. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in Ventas in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ventas by 66.2% in the fourth 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 last quarter. Promus Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Ventas during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ventas in the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ventas by 1,039.4% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 809 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 738 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.18% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ventas news, CAO Gregory R. Liebbe sold 3,866 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,371 shares in the company, valued at $716,373. This represents a 25.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 214,679 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.22, for a total value of $14,645,401.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,138,143 shares in the company, valued at approximately $77,644,115.46. This trade represents a 15.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 304,778 shares of company stock valued at $20,934,891 in the last quarter. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ventas Stock Performance

Ventas stock traded up $0.44 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $66.04. 3,452,779 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,653,947. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $66.47 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $63.45. Ventas, Inc. has a twelve month low of $41.45 and a twelve month high of $71.36. The firm has a market cap of $28.90 billion, a PE ratio of 347.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85.

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

Ventas Increases Dividend

The company 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 represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.91%. This is a positive change from Ventas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Ventas's dividend payout ratio is 1,010.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on VTR. Robert W. Baird upgraded Ventas from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $66.00 to $65.00 in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Ventas from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Argus set a $75.00 price target on shares of Ventas in a report on Friday, March 7th. StockNews.com raised shares of Ventas from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Ventas from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ventas presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $72.90.

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.