Renaissance Technologies LLC Grows Stock Position in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its position in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR - Free Report) by 56.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,499,228 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 896,717 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned 0.60% of Ventas worth $147,180,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ventas in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in Ventas by 66.2% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 527 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Ventas during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ventas during the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ventas by 1,039.4% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 809 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 738 shares during the period. 94.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ventas Stock Up 0.7 %

VTR traded up $0.44 on Friday, reaching $66.04. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,452,779 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,657,039. The company has a market capitalization of $28.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 347.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.02. Ventas, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $41.45 and a fifty-two week high of $71.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $66.47 and a two-hundred day moving average of $63.45.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR - Get Free Report) last issued its 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 net margin of 1.65% and a return on equity of 0.82%. As a group, analysts forecast 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 will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.48 dividend. This is an increase from Ventas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Ventas's payout ratio is presently 1,010.53%.

Insider Activity at Ventas

In related news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 388 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.00, for a total transaction of $27,548.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,128,143 shares in the company, valued at $80,098,153. This represents a 0.03 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Gregory R. Liebbe sold 3,866 shares of Ventas stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 11,371 shares in the company, valued at approximately $716,373. This represents a 25.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 304,778 shares of company stock valued at $20,934,891 in the last three months. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on VTR shares. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Ventas from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Baird R W upgraded Ventas from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Robert W. Baird upgraded Ventas from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and decreased their target price for the company from $66.00 to $65.00 in a report on Friday, January 17th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Ventas from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Wedbush lifted their price objective on Ventas from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average 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.