Employees Retirement System of Texas Sells 58,681 Shares of Ventas, Inc. $VTR

Key Points

• Employees Retirement System of Texas trimmed its stake in Ventas by 6.2%, selling 58,681 shares and now holds 883,023 shares worth about $61.8 million; overall institutional ownership is very high at 94.18% with Vanguard, JPMorgan and State Street holding large positions.
• Ventas reported a significant quarterly earnings miss—EPS of $0.15 vs. a consensus $0.89—even as revenue rose 21.7% year-over-year; the company set FY2026 guidance of $3.78–$3.88 EPS and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.52 (annual $2.08, ~2.4% yield).
• Corporate insiders have sold 86,106 shares in the past 90 days (including the CEO and an EVP), while analysts remain generally positive with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a $89 average price target (13 Buys, 3 Holds).

Employees Retirement System of Texas reduced its position in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR - Free Report) by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 883,023 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 58,681 shares during the quarter. Employees Retirement System of Texas owned 0.19% of Ventas worth $61,803,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VTR. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Ventas by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 73,598,827 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $5,151,182,000 after purchasing an additional 1,802,515 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Ventas by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 29,701,300 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $2,078,794,000 after purchasing an additional 387,495 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Ventas by 5.2% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 27,998,629 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,781,267,000 after purchasing an additional 1,388,678 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ventas by 4.9% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,226,283 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $769,061,000 after purchasing an additional 574,663 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Ventas by 2.5% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,601,143 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $462,002,000 after purchasing an additional 160,998 shares in the last quarter. 94.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on VTR. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $85.00 price objective on shares of Ventas in a research note on Monday, February 9th. KeyCorp increased their target price on Ventas from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $93.00 price target on shares of Ventas in a report on Monday, February 9th. Morgan Stanley set a $90.00 price target on Ventas in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Ventas from $80.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. Thirteen equities 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, Ventas currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $89.00.

Insider Activity at Ventas

In related news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 10,322 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 1,114,034 shares of the company's stock, valued at $86,515,880.44. This represents a 0.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Carey S. Roberts sold 35,532 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.00, for a total value of $3,020,220.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 72,755 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,184,175. This trade represents a 32.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 86,106 shares of company stock valued at $6,931,397 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Ventas Trading Up 0.4%

NYSE VTR opened at $86.14 on Friday. Ventas, Inc. has a 52 week low of $60.15 and a 52 week high of $87.87. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $81.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $76.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The firm has a market cap of $40.91 billion, a PE ratio of 159.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.73.

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 for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.89 by ($0.74). The firm had revenue of ($1,229.71) million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.53 billion. Ventas had a net margin of 4.31% and a return on equity of 2.09%. Ventas's revenue was up 21.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.81 earnings per share. Ventas has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.780-3.880 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. This is a positive change from Ventas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Ventas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 355.56%.

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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