5,651,463 Shares in Ventas, Inc. $VTR Bought by Legal & General Group Plc

Key Points

• Legal & General Group Plc acquired 5.65 million Ventas shares worth approximately $501.9 million, giving it a 1.10% stake. Institutional investors now own 94.18% of the healthcare REIT.
• Ventas beat quarterly expectations with EPS of $0.97 and revenue of $1.73 billion, up 21.7% year over year. Analysts expect $3.89 in full-year EPS.
• Ventas shares opened at $93.47, near the analyst consensus price target of $98.00; coverage reflects a “Moderate Buy” consensus, with 15 Buy ratings and three Holds.

Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 5,651,463 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $501,850,000. Legal & General Group Plc owned about 1.10% of Ventas at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in VTR. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new stake in Ventas during the second quarter worth about $25,722,000. Cetera Trust Company N.A purchased a new position in Ventas in the second quarter valued at about $381,000. Cibc World Market Inc. purchased a new position in Ventas in the second quarter valued at about $4,876,000. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp purchased a new position in Ventas in the second quarter valued at about $3,517,000. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ventas during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $5,526,000. 94.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ventas Stock Performance

NYSE VTR opened at $93.47 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $47.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 173.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The company's 50 day moving average is $91.56 and its 200-day moving average is $87.26. Ventas, Inc. has a 12-month low of $66.38 and a 12-month high of $101.60.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.96 by $0.01. Ventas had a return on equity of 1.99% and a net margin of 4.08%.The business had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.68 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.87 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 21.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ventas news, Director Michael J. Embler bought 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $78.81 per share, for a total transaction of $197,025.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 19,202 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,513,309.62. The trade was a 14.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on VTR shares. Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Ventas from $95.00 to $88.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Mizuho upped their price objective on Ventas from $98.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Raymond James Financial began coverage on Ventas in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $94.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings raised Ventas from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on Ventas from $85.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ventas currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $98.00.

Ventas Profile

Ventas, Inc NYSE: VTR is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that specializes in healthcare-related real estate. The company acquires, owns and manages a diversified portfolio of properties serving the healthcare continuum, including senior housing communities, skilled nursing facilities, medical office buildings, life science and research centers, and other properties leased to healthcare providers and operators. Ventas generates revenue through long-term leases, property management and selective development activities focused on meeting the real estate needs of the healthcare sector.

Ventas' business model combines property ownership with active asset management and capital markets activity.

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