Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) CEO Debra A. Cafaro Sells 44,551 Shares

Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR - Get Free Report) CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 44,551 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.06, for a total transaction of $3,165,794.06. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,145,695 shares of the company's stock, valued at $81,413,086.70. This trade represents a 3.74 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Ventas Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:VTR traded up $0.44 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $66.04. The company had a trading volume of 3,452,779 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,653,947. Ventas, Inc. has a 1-year low of $41.45 and a 1-year high of $71.36. The stock has a market cap of $28.90 billion, a PE ratio of 347.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.02. The business's 50 day moving average price is $66.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $63.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25.

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

Ventas Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.91%. This is a boost from Ventas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Ventas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 1,010.53%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ventas

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VTR. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ventas by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 66,501,010 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $3,916,244,000 after purchasing an additional 912,813 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Ventas by 2.2% in 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 buying an additional 599,600 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ventas by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,948,546 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $643,207,000 after acquiring an additional 537,253 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Ventas by 60.8% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,207,553 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $365,563,000 after acquiring an additional 2,347,705 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of Ventas by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 6,133,172 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $361,184,000 after buying an additional 335,192 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.18% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VTR has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wedbush raised their target price on Ventas from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Baird R W raised Ventas from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. StockNews.com upgraded Ventas from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Argus set a $75.00 target price on Ventas in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Ventas from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $72.90.

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.