ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd Boosts Stake in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd raised its stake in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR - Free Report) by 2.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,483,586 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 33,670 shares during the period. Ventas makes up 3.0% of ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd owned approximately 0.35% of Ventas worth $87,375,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its position in shares of Ventas by 2.2% during the third quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 15,006 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $962,000 after acquiring an additional 326 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ventas by 61.3% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 68,755 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $4,409,000 after purchasing an additional 26,133 shares in the last quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ventas in the 3rd quarter worth $252,000. Sigma Planning Corp raised its stake in shares of Ventas by 13.0% in the third quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 24,552 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,575,000 after purchasing an additional 2,822 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wolverine Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Ventas during the third quarter valued at $340,000. 94.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on VTR. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Ventas from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ventas from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Ventas from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Baird R W raised shares of Ventas from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Ventas from $72.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. 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's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $72.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ventas

In other news, CAO Gregory R. Liebbe sold 3,866 shares of the firm's 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,371 shares in the company, valued at $716,373. This trade represents a 25.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 388 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.00, for a total transaction of $27,548.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,128,143 shares of the company's stock, valued at $80,098,153. This represents a 0.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 260,227 shares of company stock valued at $17,769,097 over the last 90 days. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ventas Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:VTR traded up $0.55 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $66.91. The company had a trading volume of 2,364,975 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,389,715. Ventas, Inc. has a 12-month low of $41.45 and a 12-month high of $71.04. The company has a fifty day moving average of $62.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $62.83. The company has a market cap of $29.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 352.19, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.37. 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 results 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 return on equity of 0.82% and a net margin of 1.65%. On average, equities research analysts expect 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. This is a boost from Ventas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.87%. Ventas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 1,010.53%.

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.