Advisors Preferred LLC Invests $3.39 Million in Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL)

Advisors Preferred LLC acquired a new stake in Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 21,963 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $3,386,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Beacon Financial Planning Inc. grew its stake in Welltower by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. Beacon Financial Planning Inc. now owns 27,893 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $4,274,000 after purchasing an additional 1,780 shares during the period. Summit Trail Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Welltower by 61.4% in the 1st quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 6,756 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,035,000 after buying an additional 2,571 shares during the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment grew its position in Welltower by 23,204.3% during the fourth quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 1,900,000 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $2,183,000 after buying an additional 1,891,847 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Welltower by 8.6% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 131,503 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $20,147,000 after buying an additional 10,423 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in Welltower by 10.3% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 7,632,705 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $961,950,000 after acquiring an additional 712,279 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.80% of the company's stock.

Welltower Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of WELL stock traded down $0.15 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $161.48. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,388,390 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,996,040. The company has a current ratio of 4.23, a quick ratio of 4.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. Welltower Inc. has a one year low of $108.24 and a one year high of $162.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $105.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 92.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.92. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $153.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $147.21.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.05. Welltower had a net margin of 12.65% and a return on equity of 3.41%. The firm had revenue of $2.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.01 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 30.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Welltower Inc. will post 4.88 EPS for the current year.

Welltower Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th were given a $0.67 dividend. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 14th. Welltower's dividend payout ratio is currently 154.02%.

Insider Activity at Welltower

In other Welltower news, Director Andrew Gundlach purchased 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 30th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $151.46 per share, with a total value of $3,029,200.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 20,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,029,200. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on WELL shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Welltower from $158.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Wedbush reissued an "underperform" rating on shares of Welltower in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Welltower from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Welltower from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Welltower from $145.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $168.18.

About Welltower

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.