Welltower (NYSE:WELL) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Morgan Stanley Analyst Says

Welltower (NYSE:WELL - Free Report) had its target price upped by Morgan Stanley from $155.00 to $160.00 in a report published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the real estate investment trust's stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on WELL. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Welltower from $141.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Scotiabank raised their target price on Welltower from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Royal Bank of Canada raised Welltower from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $146.00 to $168.00 in a research note on Friday, February 28th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Welltower from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Welltower from $145.00 to $157.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $161.83.

Welltower Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:WELL traded up $1.13 on Tuesday, reaching $149.38. The company had a trading volume of 1,763,999 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,895,406. The firm has a market capitalization of $97.69 billion, a PE ratio of 95.76, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.94. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $147.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $139.80. Welltower has a 52-week low of $98.36 and a 52-week high of $158.55. The company has a current ratio of 4.22, a quick ratio of 4.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.05. Welltower had a net margin of 11.91% and a return on equity of 3.15%. The firm had revenue of $2.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.40 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.01 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 30.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Welltower will post 4.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Welltower Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be issued a $0.67 dividend. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 14th. Welltower's dividend payout ratio is 154.02%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Welltower

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WELL. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Welltower during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new position in Welltower during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Welltower in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Welltower in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Welltower during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. 94.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.