Retirement Systems of Alabama Raises Stock Position in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its holdings in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR - Free Report) by 1.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 335,358 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 5,595 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned approximately 0.08% of Ventas worth $23,059,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in Ventas by 16.9% in the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,763 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $328,000 after purchasing an additional 690 shares in the last quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Ventas by 24.9% during the 1st quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 1,084 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $75,000 after buying an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Ventas in the first quarter worth about $245,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its position in shares of Ventas by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 255,640 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $17,576,000 after purchasing an additional 5,873 shares during the period. Finally, Clarius Group LLC bought a new stake in Ventas during the 1st quarter valued at $227,000. 94.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ventas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VTR traded up $1.18 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $63.63. The stock had a trading volume of 4,872,329 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,855,107. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $65.29 and a 200-day simple moving average of $63.89. Ventas, Inc. has a 1 year low of $49.48 and a 1 year high of $71.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. The company has a market capitalization of $28.72 billion, a PE ratio of 192.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.89.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.32 billion. Ventas had a net margin of 2.80% and a return on equity of 1.36%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 13.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.78 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ventas Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 17th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.02%. Ventas's payout ratio is 581.82%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Carey S. Roberts sold 23,500 shares of Ventas stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.23, for a total transaction of $1,509,405.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 116,650 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,492,429.50. The trade was a 16.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Walter C. Rakowich sold 1,459 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.76, for a total value of $93,025.84. Following the transaction, the director now owns 27,454 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,750,467.04. This represents a 5.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 165,586 shares of company stock valued at $10,997,929. Insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on VTR shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Ventas from $72.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Mizuho raised their price objective on Ventas from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Ventas from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Ventas from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on Ventas from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $72.90.

Ventas Profile

Ventas Inc NYSE: VTR is a leading S&P 500 real estate investment trust focused on delivering strong, sustainable shareholder returns by enabling exceptional environments that benefit a large and growing aging population. The Company's growth is fueled by its senior housing communities, which provide valuable services to residents and enable them to thrive in supported environments.