Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) Shares Sold by Hsbc Holdings PLC

Hsbc Holdings PLC reduced its stake in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR - Free Report) by 12.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,598,023 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 223,179 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned about 0.38% of Ventas worth $94,005,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VTR. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ventas during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Ventas by 66.2% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 527 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the period. Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ventas during the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ventas in the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Ventas by 1,039.4% in the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 809 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 738 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.18% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on VTR shares. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Ventas from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Baird R W raised Ventas from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Ventas from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Wedbush boosted their price objective on shares of Ventas from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Argus set a $75.00 target price on Ventas in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ventas currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $72.90.

Insider Activity

In other Ventas news, CAO Gregory R. Liebbe sold 3,866 shares of Ventas stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total value of $243,558.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 11,371 shares in the company, valued at $716,373. The trade was a 25.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 44,551 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.06, for a total value of $3,165,794.06. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,145,695 shares of the company's stock, valued at $81,413,086.70. The trade was a 3.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 304,778 shares of company stock worth $20,934,891 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Ventas Stock Performance

NYSE:VTR traded up $0.67 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $69.17. The company's stock had a trading volume of 686,211 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,673,054. The business's fifty day moving average is $67.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $63.84. The stock has a market cap of $30.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 364.03, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.02. Ventas, Inc. has a 1 year low of $43.64 and a 1 year high of $71.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

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

Ventas Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. This is a positive change from Ventas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. Ventas's dividend payout ratio is presently 1,010.53%.

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.