Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Acquires 79,429 Shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its stake in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR - Free Report) by 24.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 399,516 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 79,429 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned 0.10% of Ventas worth $23,527,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. purchased a new position in Ventas during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Ventas by 66.2% during the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 527 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Promus Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ventas during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ventas in the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its position 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 worth $48,000 after buying an additional 738 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.18% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Ventas Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE VTR opened at $66.60 on Wednesday. Ventas, Inc. has a 1 year low of $41.45 and a 1 year high of $71.04. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $62.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $62.78. The company has a market cap of $29.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 350.53, 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.

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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, 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%. Research analysts anticipate that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This is a boost from Ventas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.88%. Ventas's dividend payout ratio is presently 1,010.53%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on VTR shares. Wedbush raised their price target on Ventas from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Ventas from $72.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target 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. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Ventas from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price 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. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ventas has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $72.20.

Ventas 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.

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