Cwm LLC Acquires 49,994 Shares of Ventas, Inc. $VTR

Key Points

• Cwm LLC boosted its stake in Ventas by 70.8%, acquiring 49,994 shares to hold 120,618 shares valued at about $9.33 million at the end of the quarter.
• Top executives sold stock: EVP Carey S. Roberts sold 35,532 shares for roughly $3.02 million and CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 10,322 shares for about $801,606, reducing their ownership stakes.
• Analysts remain generally positive with a consensus "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $90.47, while Ventas increased its quarterly dividend to $0.52 (annualized $2.08, ~2.4% yield).

Cwm LLC boosted its holdings in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR - Free Report) by 70.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 120,618 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 49,994 shares during the quarter. Cwm LLC's holdings in Ventas were worth $9,333,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in VTR. GoalVest Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Ventas in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Cloud Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Ventas in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Wiser Advisor Group LLC acquired a new position in Ventas in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its position in Ventas by 1,557.7% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 431 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 405 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its position in Ventas by 65.5% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 455 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.18% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Carey S. Roberts sold 35,532 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.00, for a total transaction of $3,020,220.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 72,755 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,184,175. This represents a 32.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 10,322 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.66, for a total transaction of $801,606.52. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,114,034 shares in the company, valued at $86,515,880.44. The trade was a 0.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on VTR shares. KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of Ventas from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of Ventas in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Ventas in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $93.00 price target on shares of Ventas in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Ventas from $87.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $90.47.

Ventas Price Performance

Shares of VTR stock opened at $85.12 on Monday. Ventas, Inc. has a 1 year low of $61.76 and a 1 year high of $88.36. The firm's 50 day moving average is $84.88 and its 200-day moving average is $79.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 157.64, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.89 by ($0.74). Ventas had a return on equity of 2.09% and a net margin of 4.31%.The company had revenue of ($1,229.71) million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.53 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.81 earnings per share. Ventas's revenue for the quarter was up 21.7% on a year-over-year basis. Ventas has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.780-3.880 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. This is a positive change from Ventas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Ventas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 385.19%.

Ventas Company 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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