Liberty Mutual Group Asset Management Inc. Purchases Shares of 25,290 Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

Liberty Mutual Group Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 25,290 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $1,296,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. First Community Trust NA bought a new position in Ventas during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ventas in the second quarter worth $27,000. First Financial Corp IN bought a new stake in Ventas during the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Ventas during the 2nd quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial bought a new stake in Ventas in the 2nd quarter worth $51,000. 94.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on VTR shares. StockNews.com raised Ventas from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Wedbush boosted their target price on Ventas from $64.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised 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. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Ventas from $52.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Ventas to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $58.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ventas

In other news, CEO Peter J. Bulgarelli sold 3,784 shares of Ventas stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.24, for a total transaction of $209,028.16. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 104,295 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,761,255.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Peter J. Bulgarelli sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.99, for a total value of $389,940.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 90,795 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,900,767.05. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Peter J. Bulgarelli sold 3,784 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.24, for a total value of $209,028.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 104,295 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,761,255.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 77,065 shares of company stock valued at $4,526,464. Insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Ventas Stock Performance

Shares of VTR traded up $0.01 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $63.84. 2,958,827 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,400,958. Ventas, Inc. has a 1 year low of $39.33 and a 1 year high of $65.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.58. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $59.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $51.53. The stock has a market cap of $26.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -336.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 1.36.

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

Ventas Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 1st. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.82%. Ventas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -947.32%.

About Ventas

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.