Chilton Capital Management LLC Sells 25,356 Shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

Chilton Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR - Free Report) by 6.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 360,688 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 25,356 shares during the quarter. Chilton Capital Management LLC owned about 0.08% of Ventas worth $24,933,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in VTR. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Ventas in the first quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ventas by 40.9% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 34,773 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $2,391,000 after purchasing an additional 10,091 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Ventas in the 1st quarter valued at $579,000. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Ventas in the 1st quarter valued at $879,000. Finally, Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its stake in Ventas by 48.4% during the 4th quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 39,760 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $2,341,000 after purchasing an additional 12,969 shares in the last quarter. 94.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VTR has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Ventas from $72.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Ventas from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Ventas from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Ventas from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Ventas from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $70.00 to $72.00 in a report on Monday, June 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $72.90.

Ventas Stock Performance

NYSE:VTR traded down $0.12 during trading on Monday, reaching $62.81. The company's stock had a trading volume of 581,094 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,878,285. Ventas, Inc. has a 12 month low of $51.57 and a 12 month high of $71.36. The firm has a market cap of $28.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 190.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.87. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $64.34 and a 200-day moving average of $64.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.32.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.02. The company 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 firm's revenue for the quarter was up 13.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.78 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ventas Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 17th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th will be issued a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.06%. Ventas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 581.82%.

Insider Transactions at Ventas

In related news, Director Walter C. Rakowich sold 1,459 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.76, for a total value of $93,025.84. Following the sale, the director directly owned 27,454 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,750,467.04. The trade was a 5.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Robert F. Probst sold 69,592 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.59, for a total transaction of $4,494,947.28. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 168,364 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,874,630.76. This trade represents a 29.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 121,035 shares of company stock worth $7,832,135 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

About Ventas

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.