Tower Research Capital LLC TRC Decreases Stake in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

Tower Research Capital LLC TRC reduced its stake in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR - Free Report) by 83.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,098 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 66,949 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC's holdings in Ventas were worth $771,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Ventas during the third quarter worth about $64,000. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its stake in Ventas by 18.4% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 9,952 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $634,000 after acquiring an additional 1,550 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Ventas by 11.7% in the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 12,712 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $815,000 after acquiring an additional 1,336 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ventas by 11.5% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,252,460 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $80,070,000 after acquiring an additional 128,945 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of Ventas by 2.2% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 27,557,480 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,767,261,000 after purchasing an additional 599,600 shares during the last quarter. 94.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ventas Stock Performance

NYSE:VTR opened at $68.18 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.84 billion, a PE ratio of 358.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.02. Ventas, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $43.64 and a fifty-two week high of $71.36. The company has a fifty day moving average of $67.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $63.78.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by $0.83. Ventas had a net margin of 1.65% and a return on equity of 0.82%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.82%. This is a boost from Ventas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. Ventas's payout ratio is presently 1,010.53%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VTR has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wedbush increased their price target on Ventas from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Robert W. Baird raised Ventas from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $66.00 to $65.00 in a report on Friday, January 17th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Ventas from $72.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Argus set a $75.00 price objective on shares of Ventas in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Ventas from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Four 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $72.90.

Insider Activity at Ventas

In related news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 214,679 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.22, for a total transaction of $14,645,401.38. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,138,143 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $77,644,115.46. This represents a 15.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Gregory R. Liebbe sold 3,866 shares of the 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $716,373. The trade was a 25.37 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 304,778 shares of company stock valued at $20,934,891. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.

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