Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL) Stock Holdings Raised by Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD

Key Points

• Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD increased its stake in Welltower Inc. by 15.4%, owning 18,027 shares worth approximately $2.76 million, making it the 24th largest holding in their portfolio.
• Welltower recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.74 per share, marking an increase from the previous quarter's dividend of $0.67, leading to an annualized yield of 1.8%.
• The company's stock is currently rated as a "Moderate Buy" by analysts, with a consensus price target of $169.82, although some analysts have also issued sell ratings.

Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD increased its position in Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL - Free Report) by 15.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,027 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 2,403 shares during the quarter. Welltower makes up about 1.0% of Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD's portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD's holdings in Welltower were worth $2,762,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WELL. Capital International Investors lifted its position in Welltower by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 37,096,408 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $4,674,826,000 after acquiring an additional 318,496 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in shares of Welltower by 9.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 18,706,788 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $2,357,617,000 after purchasing an additional 1,652,611 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Welltower by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 15,782,795 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,989,106,000 after purchasing an additional 1,354,231 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Welltower by 53.5% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 8,430,496 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,062,495,000 after purchasing an additional 2,939,229 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Welltower by 10.3% in the 4th 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 worth $961,950,000 after buying an additional 712,279 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.80% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WELL. Wedbush restated an "underperform" rating on shares of Welltower in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Welltower from $162.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Welltower from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Welltower from $158.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Welltower from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $169.82.

Insider Buying and Selling at Welltower

In related news, Director Andrew Gundlach purchased 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 30th. The shares were bought at an average price of $151.46 per share, for a total transaction of $3,029,200.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,029,200. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Welltower Trading Up 0.2%

WELL stock traded up $0.37 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $169.15. The stock had a trading volume of 1,302,317 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,975,194. The firm has a market cap of $113.13 billion, a PE ratio of 95.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 4.19 and a quick ratio of 4.19. Welltower Inc. has a 12-month low of $111.28 and a 12-month high of $170.30. The company's 50-day moving average price is $155.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $149.62.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.22 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $2.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.49 billion. Welltower had a net margin of 12.18% and a return on equity of 3.38%. Welltower's revenue for the quarter was up 39.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.05 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Welltower Inc. will post 4.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Welltower Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th will be issued a $0.74 dividend. This is a boost from Welltower's previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 12th. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Welltower's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 151.41%.

Welltower Company Profile

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.