4,166 Shares in Welltower Inc. $WELL Bought by Associated Banc Corp

Key Points

• Associated Banc Corp opened a new Welltower position, buying 4,166 shares worth approximately $959,000 in the third quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 94.8% of the REIT’s shares.
• Welltower beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting $1.67 in EPS and $3.72 billion in revenue; revenue rose 38.4% year over year. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.85 per share, equivalent to a 1.4% annual yield.
• Analysts’ consensus rating is “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $259.81. Director Andrew Gundlach also purchased 5,000 shares for about $1.21 million.

Associated Banc Corp bought a new stake in shares of Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 4,166 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $959,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WELL. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of Welltower in the second quarter valued at about $4,425,089,000. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in Welltower during the second quarter worth about $1,599,351,000. BlackRock Inc. boosted its holdings in Welltower by 5.5% during the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 78,049,214 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $17,714,830,000 after purchasing an additional 4,045,458 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new position in Welltower during the second quarter worth about $528,400,000. Finally, Amundi grew its holdings in shares of Welltower by 60.3% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 5,339,664 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,211,944,000 after acquiring an additional 2,008,543 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.80% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Welltower

In other news, Director Andrew Gundlach bought 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 26th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $242.06 per share, for a total transaction of $1,210,300.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 30,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,261,800. This represents a 20.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Purchased indirectly through two trusts. The transaction was executed in multiple trades at prices ranging from $241.59 to $242.59. The reported $242.06 price is the weighted-average purchase price. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the company's stock.

Welltower Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WELL opened at $247.90 on Thursday. Welltower Inc. has a 12-month low of $181.47 and a 12-month high of $255.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $181.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a current ratio of 3.16, a quick ratio of 3.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $233.64 and a 200 day moving average of $219.05.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 26th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.64 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.64 billion. Welltower had a net margin of 12.08% and a return on equity of 3.61%. The company's revenue was up 38.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.34 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Welltower Inc. will post 6.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Welltower Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 10th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Welltower's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 147.19%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on WELL. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Welltower from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Welltower from $266.00 to $268.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, October 19th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Welltower from $238.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $256.00 price objective (down from $260.00) on shares of Welltower in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane raised their price target on Welltower from $238.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $259.81.

About Welltower

Welltower Inc NYSE: WELL is a healthcare-focused real estate investment trust that owns, develops, and manages properties used to provide healthcare and related services. Its portfolio is centered on senior housing communities, outpatient medical facilities, and post-acute care properties, including assets operated by healthcare providers and senior living companies.

The company's senior housing investments support independent living, assisted living, and memory care services. Its outpatient medical properties accommodate physicians, clinics, and other healthcare providers, while its broader healthcare real estate portfolio is designed to serve demand for care delivered outside traditional hospitals.

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