Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) CAO Gregory R. Liebbe Sells 3,866 Shares

Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR - Get Free Report) CAO Gregory R. Liebbe sold 3,866 shares of Ventas stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were 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 owns 11,371 shares in the company, valued at approximately $716,373. This represents a 25.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Ventas Price Performance

Ventas stock traded down $0.77 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $66.08. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,113,929 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,555,563. Ventas, Inc. has a 12 month low of $41.45 and a 12 month high of $67.61. 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 company has a market capitalization of $28.88 billion, a PE ratio of 347.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.37. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $60.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $61.90.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Analysts anticipate that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors 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 dividend yield of 2.91%. This is a boost from Ventas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Ventas's payout ratio is presently 947.42%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ventas

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its holdings in Ventas by 2,671.0% during the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 2,577 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $165,000 after buying an additional 2,484 shares during the period. Creative Planning increased its position in shares of Ventas by 9.5% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 52,798 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $3,386,000 after acquiring an additional 4,593 shares in the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Ventas during the third quarter valued at approximately $226,000. Bleakley Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Ventas by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 5,639 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $362,000 after acquiring an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Ventas by 179.8% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 8,127 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $521,000 after purchasing an additional 5,222 shares during the period. 94.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on VTR. Baird R W raised Ventas from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Mizuho decreased their price target on Ventas from $71.00 to $68.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Ventas from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $66.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Friday, January 17th. StockNews.com raised shares of Ventas from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Ventas from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ventas has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $69.14.

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.