Welltower Inc. $WELL Stock: Aberdeen Group plc Trims Stake

Key Points

• Aberdeen Group sharply reduced its Welltower stake, selling 1.21 million shares (68.9%) in the third quarter. It retained 547,611 shares, valued at about $126.1 million.
• Welltower reported quarterly EPS of $1.67, above the $1.64 consensus, and revenue of $3.72 billion, up 38.4% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.85 per share, equivalent to a 1.4% yield.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $263.10; shares opened at $244.62. Director Andrew Gundlach also bought 5,000 shares in August.

Aberdeen Group plc cut its stake in shares of Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL - Free Report) by 68.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 547,611 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 1,213,293 shares during the quarter. Aberdeen Group plc owned about 0.07% of Welltower worth $126,082,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of WELL. Valued Retirements Inc. boosted its stake in Welltower by 6.8% in the 3rd quarter. Valued Retirements Inc. now owns 4,527 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,042,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in Welltower by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 19,581 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $4,444,000 after purchasing an additional 1,145 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in Welltower by 23.3% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,445 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $563,000 after purchasing an additional 462 shares during the last quarter. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. increased its stake in Welltower by 16.1% during the 3rd quarter. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. now owns 164,280 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $37,877,000 after purchasing an additional 22,764 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management increased its stake in Welltower by 12.2% during the 3rd quarter. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management now owns 1,095 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.80% of the company's stock.

Welltower Stock Down 0.1%

WELL stock opened at $244.62 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $179.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 105.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 3.16 and a quick ratio of 3.16. Welltower Inc. has a 1-year low of $181.47 and a 1-year high of $255.20. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $234.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $221.17.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 26th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.64 by $0.03. Welltower had a return on equity of 3.61% and a net margin of 12.08%. The company had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.64 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.34 earnings per share. Welltower's revenue was up 38.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Welltower Inc. will post 6.50 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Welltower Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 10th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. Welltower's dividend payout ratio is currently 147.19%.

Insider Transactions at Welltower

In related news, Director Andrew Gundlach purchased 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $242.06 per share, with a total value of $1,210,300.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 30,000 shares in the company, valued at $7,261,800. The trade was a 20.00% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Purchased indirectly through two trusts. The transaction was executed in multiple trades at prices ranging from $241.59 to $242.59. The reported $242.06 price is the weighted-average purchase price. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on WELL. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Welltower to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, September 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their target price on shares of Welltower from $260.00 to $258.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $263.00 price target on shares of Welltower in a report on Thursday, October 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Welltower from $260.00 to $273.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Welltower from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $263.10.

Welltower Profile

Welltower Inc. is a real estate investment trust focused on properties and services that support health care and aging. Its portfolio includes senior housing communities, outpatient medical facilities and post-acute care properties. The company works with senior housing operators, health care providers and other partners to own, lease and manage properties. Its operations span the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Founded in 1970 as Health Care REIT, the company adopted the Welltower name in 2015.

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