Welltower (NYSE:WELL) Sets New 1-Year High - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Welltower Inc. reached a new 52-week high, trading at $168.99, reflecting increased investor interest in the company.
• The company reported earnings of $1.28 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations, with a revenue increase of 39.6% compared to the same quarter last year.
• Welltower recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.74 per share, indicating a solid return for shareholders amidst a rising stock price.

Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $168.99 and last traded at $168.48, with a volume of 597437 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $166.24.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on WELL. Wall Street Zen cut Welltower from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Welltower from $158.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Scotiabank reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Welltower in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Welltower from $162.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Welltower from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Welltower currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $169.82.

Welltower Stock Down 0.1%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 4.19 and a current ratio of 4.19. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $155.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $149.76. The company has a market cap of $113.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 95.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.93.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.22 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $2.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.49 billion. Welltower had a return on equity of 3.38% and a net margin of 12.18%. Welltower's revenue for the quarter was up 39.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.05 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Welltower Inc. will post 4.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Welltower Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th will be issued a $0.74 dividend. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 12th. This is a boost from Welltower's previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Welltower's payout ratio is currently 151.41%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Welltower news, Director Andrew Gundlach purchased 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 30th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $151.46 per share, for a total transaction of $3,029,200.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 20,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,029,200. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Twin Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Welltower by 77.8% in the 2nd quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. now owns 19,185 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $2,949,000 after purchasing an additional 8,397 shares during the period. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Welltower during the 2nd quarter worth $213,000. Souders Financial Advisors raised its stake in shares of Welltower by 27.5% in the 2nd quarter. Souders Financial Advisors now owns 2,673 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $411,000 after purchasing an additional 576 shares during the period. Achmea Investment Management B.V. raised its stake in shares of Welltower by 84.0% in the 2nd quarter. Achmea Investment Management B.V. now owns 40,779 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $6,270,000 after purchasing an additional 18,619 shares during the period. Finally, Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp raised its stake in shares of Welltower by 204.4% in the 2nd quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 24,835 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $3,818,000 after purchasing an additional 16,676 shares during the period. 94.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.