Swedbank AB Lowers Position in Welltower Inc. $WELL

Key Points

• Swedbank AB decreased its stake in Welltower Inc. by 5.5%, now owning 600,180 shares worth approximately $91.95 million.
• Welltower's recent earnings report showed an EPS of $1.28, exceeding expectations, with a 39.6% revenue increase year-over-year, totaling $2.55 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.74, up from the previous $0.67, indicating a growing commitment to shareholder returns.

Swedbank AB cut its stake in shares of Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL - Free Report) by 5.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 600,180 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 35,103 shares during the period. Swedbank AB owned about 0.09% of Welltower worth $91,954,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WELL. SouthState Corp lifted its position in shares of Welltower by 704.8% in the first quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 169 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Welltower in the first quarter worth about $27,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Welltower in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Welltower in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Hughes Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Welltower in the first quarter worth about $31,000. 94.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Welltower Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of WELL stock opened at $169.09 on Friday. Welltower Inc. has a 12-month low of $122.34 and a 12-month high of $171.09. The company has a current ratio of 4.19, a quick ratio of 4.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $163.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $154.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $113.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 95.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.93.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.22 by $0.06. Welltower had a return on equity of 3.38% and a net margin of 12.18%.The firm had revenue of $2.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.49 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.05 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 39.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Welltower has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.060-5.14 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Welltower Inc. will post 4.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Welltower Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th were issued a $0.74 dividend. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. This is a positive change from Welltower's previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 12th. Welltower's payout ratio is presently 167.23%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Andrew Gundlach bought 20,000 shares of Welltower stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 30th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $151.46 per share, with a total value of $3,029,200.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 20,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,029,200. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WELL has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Welltower in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Welltower from $172.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 28th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Welltower from $162.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Welltower from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $175.00.

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.

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