Capital Group Private Client Services Inc. Increases Position in Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL)

Capital Group Private Client Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL - Free Report) by 76.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 302,759 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 131,072 shares during the quarter. Capital Group Private Client Services Inc.'s holdings in Welltower were worth $38,157,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in WELL. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Welltower by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 98,295,258 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $12,388,151,000 after acquiring an additional 2,612,044 shares during the period. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in shares of Welltower by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 37,096,408 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $4,674,826,000 after purchasing an additional 318,496 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Welltower in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,943,892,000. FMR LLC boosted its position in Welltower by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 15,782,795 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,989,106,000 after buying an additional 1,354,231 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Welltower by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,558,841 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,707,570,000 after buying an additional 644,494 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.80% of the company's stock.

Welltower Trading Down 2.3 %

WELL traded down $3.43 during trading on Monday, reaching $143.84. 2,241,788 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,871,356. The stock's 50-day moving average is $148.31 and its 200 day moving average is $137.64. Welltower Inc. has a 12 month low of $90.76 and a 12 month high of $158.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $93.72 billion, a PE ratio of 92.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 4.22, a current ratio of 4.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.73. Welltower had a net margin of 11.91% and a return on equity of 3.15%. Equities analysts anticipate that Welltower Inc. will post 4.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Welltower Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 25th were issued a dividend of $0.67 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.86%. Welltower's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 171.79%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on WELL shares. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Welltower from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. StockNews.com raised Welltower from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday. Mizuho upped their price target on Welltower from $141.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "equal weight" rating on shares of Welltower in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Welltower from $144.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Welltower currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $156.46.

Welltower Company Profile

Welltower Inc NYSE: WELL, a real estate investment trust ("REIT") and S&P 500 company headquartered in Toledo, Ohio, is driving the transformation of health care infrastructure. Welltower invests with leading seniors housing operators, post-acute providers and health systems to fund the real estate infrastructure needed to scale innovative care delivery models and improve people's wellness and overall health care experience.