American Assets Investment Management LLC Acquires Shares of 118,075 Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

American Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 118,075 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $8,119,000. Ventas comprises 3.4% of American Assets Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest holding.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in VTR. DAVENPORT & Co LLC acquired a new stake in Ventas in the first quarter valued at $276,000. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ventas in the 1st quarter worth about $65,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Ventas by 40.9% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 34,773 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,391,000 after purchasing an additional 10,091 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Ventas during the first quarter worth about $579,000. Finally, Gateway Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Ventas in the first quarter worth about $879,000. 94.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Ventas

In related news, EVP Carey S. Roberts sold 23,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.23, for a total transaction of $1,509,405.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 116,650 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,492,429.50. This trade represents a 16.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Robert F. Probst sold 29,493 shares of Ventas stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.29, for a total value of $1,955,090.97. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 168,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,160,849.56. The trade was a 14.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 334,478 shares of company stock worth $21,813,565. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on VTR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Ventas from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $70.00 to $72.00 in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on Ventas from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Ventas from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ventas currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.90.

Ventas Stock Performance

Shares of VTR opened at $66.43 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.98 billion, a PE ratio of 201.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $64.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $64.90. Ventas, Inc. has a 52-week low of $54.28 and a 52-week high of $71.36.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.37 billion. Ventas had a net margin of 2.80% and a return on equity of 1.36%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.80 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ventas Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 581.82%.

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.