Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Decreases Stake in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lessened its holdings in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 21.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 536,489 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 149,925 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp’s holdings in Ventas were worth $31,594,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its position in shares of Ventas by 7.9% in the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 332,300 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $21,310,000 after purchasing an additional 24,300 shares in the last quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. grew its holdings in Ventas by 480.7% in the 3rd quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. now owns 26,214 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,681,000 after buying an additional 21,700 shares in the last quarter. Presima Securities ULC increased its stake in shares of Ventas by 38.0% in the 4th quarter. Presima Securities ULC now owns 439,942 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $25,908,000 after acquiring an additional 121,193 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ventas by 726.8% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,267 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $310,000 after acquiring an additional 4,630 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ventas by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,028,015 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $296,100,000 after acquiring an additional 123,937 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on VTR. StockNews.com raised shares of Ventas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Wedbush lifted their price target on shares of Ventas from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Ventas from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Baird R W upgraded Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Ventas from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. 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.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.90.

Ventas Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:VTR opened at $68.08 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.76 billion, a PE ratio of 358.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.37. Ventas, Inc. has a 1 year low of $41.45 and a 1 year high of $71.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $64.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $63.21.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Analysts predict that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 EPS for the current year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This is a positive change from Ventas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.82%. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 1,010.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $716,373. The trade was a 25.37 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 388 shares of the business’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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,128,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $80,098,153. The trade was a 0.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 260,227 shares of company stock valued at $17,769,097 in the last three months. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.