Ventas, Inc. $VTR Shares Acquired by Merit Financial Group LLC

Key Points

• Merit Financial Group increased its stake in Ventas by 46.1% in Q4 to 42,789 shares, worth about $3.31 million, as part of a market where institutional investors own roughly 94.18% of the stock.
• Ventas reported a sharp quarterly EPS miss ($0.15 vs. $0.89 expected) despite 21.7% revenue growth year-over-year, and set FY2026 guidance of 3.78–3.88 EPS versus analysts' ~3.4 EPS forecast.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.52 (annualized $2.08, ~2.4% yield) and saw insider selling, including significant sales by the EVP and CEO.

Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR - Free Report) by 46.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 42,789 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 13,506 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Ventas were worth $3,311,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Ventas by 856.1% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 7,926 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $545,000 after buying an additional 7,097 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in shares of Ventas by 6.8% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 8,373 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $576,000 after buying an additional 536 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP boosted its position in shares of Ventas by 46.8% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 36,826 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $2,532,000 after buying an additional 11,739 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its position in shares of Ventas by 130.4% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 21,613 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,486,000 after buying an additional 12,233 shares during the period. Finally, Gamco Investors INC. ET AL purchased a new stake in shares of Ventas in the second quarter worth about $805,000. 94.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ventas Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of Ventas stock opened at $85.12 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $84.88 and a 200-day moving average of $79.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The company has a market capitalization of $40.47 billion, a PE ratio of 157.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.75. Ventas, Inc. has a 1-year low of $61.76 and a 1-year high of $88.36.

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

Ventas Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. This is a positive change from Ventas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Ventas's dividend payout ratio is 385.19%.

Insider Activity

In other news, 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 transaction of $3,020,220.00. Following the transaction, 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 10,322 shares of the 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 in the company, valued at $86,515,880.44. The trade was a 0.92% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $85.00 target price on shares of Ventas in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Ventas from $88.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Ventas from $88.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Argus set a $88.00 target price on Ventas in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Mizuho upped their target price on Ventas from $87.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $90.47.

Ventas 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding VTR? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.