Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Decreases Holdings in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR - Free Report) by 13.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 272,832 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 41,949 shares during the quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. owned approximately 0.07% of Ventas worth $16,067,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ventas during the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ventas during the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Ventas by 1,039.4% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 809 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 738 shares during the last quarter. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ventas during the 4th quarter valued at $48,000. Finally, State of Wyoming increased its position in shares of Ventas by 32.5% during the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 975 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares during the last quarter. 94.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Argus set a $75.00 price target on Ventas in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Scotiabank increased their price target on Ventas from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Mizuho increased their price target on Ventas from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Ventas from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Wedbush increased their price target on Ventas from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ventas currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $73.00.

Ventas Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE VTR opened at $65.45 on Tuesday. Ventas, Inc. has a 52 week low of $46.66 and a 52 week high of $71.36. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $66.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $63.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The company has a market cap of $29.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 344.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.95.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.02. Ventas had a return on equity of 0.82% and a net margin of 1.65%. The business had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.32 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.78 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 13.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ventas Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.93%. Ventas's dividend payout ratio is currently 581.82%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 9,110 shares of Ventas stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.04, for a total transaction of $601,624.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,145,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $75,661,697.80. This trade represents a 0.79% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Walter C. Rakowich sold 1,459 shares of Ventas stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.76, for a total value of $93,025.84. Following the sale, the director now owns 27,454 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,750,467.04. This trade represents a 5.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 311,481 shares of company stock worth $21,385,983 in the last quarter. 0.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Ventas Profile

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.

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