KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Takes Position in Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 210,746 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $26,560,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Welltower in the 4th quarter valued at about $8,238,000. Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its holdings in Welltower by 49.4% during the 4th quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 56,066 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $7,066,000 after acquiring an additional 18,541 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of Welltower in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $698,000. Summit Global Investments raised its holdings in shares of Welltower by 193.6% in the 4th quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 6,925 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $873,000 after purchasing an additional 4,566 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Welltower during the 4th quarter worth $98,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.80% of the company's stock.

Welltower Stock Performance

Welltower stock traded up $0.39 on Thursday, hitting $150.24. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,849,151 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,644,829. The firm has a market cap of $96.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 96.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a quick ratio of 4.22, a current ratio of 4.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. Welltower Inc. has a one year low of $87.87 and a one year high of $158.55. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $144.88 and a 200-day moving average price of $135.23.

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Welltower (NYSE:WELL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.73. Welltower had a return on equity of 3.15% and a net margin of 11.91%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Welltower Inc. will post 4.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Welltower Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.78%. Welltower's payout ratio is 171.79%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WELL. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Welltower from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $146.00 to $168.00 in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Raymond James upped their target price on shares of Welltower from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of Welltower from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Welltower from $144.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Wedbush raised shares of Welltower from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $145.00 to $167.00 in a research note on Friday, February 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $156.46.

About Welltower

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.