Welltower (NYSE:WELL) Sets New 1-Year High - Still a Buy?

Shares of Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $158.55 and last traded at $156.68, with a volume of 2104635 shares. The stock had previously closed at $158.07.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WELL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wedbush reaffirmed an "underperform" rating on shares of Welltower in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Welltower from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Welltower from $145.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Welltower from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Welltower in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $168.18.

Welltower Trading Down 0.1%

The firm has a market cap of $102.96 billion, a PE ratio of 90.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $151.69 and a 200 day simple moving average of $146.02. The company has a current ratio of 4.23, a quick ratio of 4.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

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

Welltower Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th were paid a dividend of $0.67 per share. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 14th. Welltower's payout ratio is 154.02%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Andrew Gundlach purchased 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 30th. The stock was bought at an average price of $151.46 per share, with a total value of $3,029,200.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,029,200. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.21% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Welltower

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. SouthState Corp lifted its stake in shares of Welltower by 704.8% in the first quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 169 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Welltower during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Welltower in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Welltower in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Welltower during the first quarter worth approximately $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.80% 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.