Braun Stacey Associates Inc. Has $35.91 Million Stock Position in Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL)

Braun Stacey Associates Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL - Free Report) by 5.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 234,401 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 13,973 shares during the quarter. Welltower accounts for 1.5% of Braun Stacey Associates Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. Braun Stacey Associates Inc.'s holdings in Welltower were worth $35,913,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WELL. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Welltower in the fourth quarter valued at $3,943,892,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Welltower by 53.5% in the fourth 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 buying an additional 2,939,229 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Welltower by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 98,295,258 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $12,388,151,000 after buying an additional 2,612,044 shares in the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment increased its stake in shares of Welltower by 23,204.3% in the fourth quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 1,900,000 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $2,183,000 after buying an additional 1,891,847 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Welltower by 17,343.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,738,052 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $266,287,000 after buying an additional 1,728,088 shares in the last quarter. 94.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Welltower Trading Up 1.4%

WELL traded up $2.06 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $152.77. 1,513,926 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,920,275. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 4.23 and a current ratio of 4.23. Welltower Inc. has a one year low of $102.92 and a one year high of $158.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $99.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.02, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.92. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $151.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $144.40.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.20 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $2.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.40 billion. Welltower had a return on equity of 3.41% and a net margin of 12.65%. Welltower's revenue was up 30.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.01 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Welltower Inc. will post 4.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Welltower Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th were given a dividend of $0.67 per share. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.75%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 14th. Welltower's dividend payout ratio is currently 154.02%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on WELL. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Welltower from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Scotiabank reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Welltower in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Mizuho raised their price target on Welltower from $141.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Welltower from $145.00 to $157.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Welltower from $158.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $168.18.

Insider Transactions at Welltower

In other news, Director Andrew Gundlach purchased 20,000 shares of Welltower stock in a transaction on Monday, June 30th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $151.46 per share, with a total value of $3,029,200.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,029,200. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

About Welltower

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.