Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI Boosts Holdings in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI lifted its holdings in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR - Free Report) by 217.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 856,525 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 586,676 shares during the quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI owned approximately 0.21% of Ventas worth $43,905,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of VTR. Evoke Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ventas during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $6,947,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Ventas by 405.5% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 171,194 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $8,532,000 after buying an additional 137,327 shares during the period. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new stake in shares of Ventas in the first quarter worth $1,005,000. Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in Ventas during the fourth quarter valued at $3,560,000. Finally, Centersquare Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Ventas by 11.5% in the first quarter. Centersquare Investment Management LLC now owns 7,806,396 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $345,667,000 after acquiring an additional 802,546 shares during the period. 94.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ventas Stock Performance

Ventas stock traded up $0.93 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $64.89. 1,609,605 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,388,279. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 0.58 and a quick ratio of 0.58. Ventas, Inc. has a 1 year low of $39.33 and a 1 year high of $65.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -339.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 1.36. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $59.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $51.35.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The real estate investment trust reported $0.05 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.79 by ($0.74). Ventas had a negative return on equity of 1.63% and a negative net margin of 3.33%. The company had revenue of $1.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.75 earnings per share. Ventas's revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ventas Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.77%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 1st. Ventas's dividend payout ratio is currently -947.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 40,079 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.29, for a total value of $2,296,125.91. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 986,717 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $56,529,016.93. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Ventas news, CEO Peter J. Bulgarelli sold 6,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.99, for a total value of $389,940.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 90,795 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,900,767.05. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 40,079 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.29, for a total transaction of $2,296,125.91. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 986,717 shares in the company, valued at $56,529,016.93. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 77,065 shares of company stock valued at $4,526,464. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VTR has been the subject of a number of research reports. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Ventas from $64.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Ventas from $55.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Ventas from $52.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ventas from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Ventas from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $58.67.

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.