Welltower (NYSE:WELL) Cut to “Sell” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Welltower (NYSE:WELL) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report published on Wednesday.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on WELL. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Welltower from $221.00 to $242.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Welltower from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $132.00 to $147.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Welltower from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Welltower from $140.00 to $158.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Welltower from $144.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $156.46.

Welltower Price Performance

Welltower stock opened at $153.39 on Wednesday. Welltower has a 52 week low of $87.87 and a 52 week high of $158.55. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $145.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $135.52. The stock has a market cap of $98.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 98.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.20. 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) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.73. Welltower had a return on equity of 3.15% and a net margin of 11.91%. On average, equities analysts predict that Welltower will post 4.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Welltower Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 25th were paid a dividend of $0.67 per share. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. Welltower’s dividend payout ratio is 171.79%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Welltower

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Welltower by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 121,080 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $15,260,000 after purchasing an additional 946 shares in the last quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ purchased a new position in Welltower in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,818,000. Centaurus Financial Inc. grew its stake in Welltower by 2,074.5% in the 4th quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 17,135 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,159,000 after buying an additional 16,347 shares in the last quarter. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Welltower in the 4th quarter worth $54,000. Finally, Comprehensive Money Management Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Welltower during the 4th quarter valued at $539,000. 94.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.