Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, fifteen have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $80.6471.

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Ventas from $80.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Ventas in a research report on Friday. They set a “buy” rating and a $94.00 price objective for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $93.00 target price on shares of Ventas in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Ventas from $80.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. Finally, KeyCorp raised their price target on Ventas from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 4th.

Ventas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VTR opened at $74.90 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The company has a market cap of $35.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 144.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.78. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $78.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $71.42. Ventas has a 1-year low of $56.97 and a 1-year high of $81.89.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.88 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.01. Ventas had a return on equity of 2.05% and a net margin of 4.28%.The business had revenue of $1.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.44 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.80 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.5% on a year-over-year basis. Ventas has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.450-3.480 EPS. Analysts forecast that Ventas will post 3.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ventas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 31st. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 369.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ventas news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 10,322 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.26, for a total transaction of $797,477.72. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,145,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $88,516,395.70. This trade represents a 0.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Peter J. Bulgarelli sold 2,229 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.08, for a total transaction of $178,498.32. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 106,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,527,559.04. This represents a 2.05% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 713,520 shares of company stock worth $52,788,577 over the last 90 days. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ventas

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Ventas during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $344,740,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ventas by 4.1% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 71,796,312 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $4,533,937,000 after purchasing an additional 2,854,751 shares during the period. UBS Group AG raised its stake in shares of Ventas by 142.4% during the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 3,507,841 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $245,514,000 after purchasing an additional 2,060,770 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ventas by 451.9% during the second quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 2,316,344 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $146,277,000 after purchasing an additional 1,896,627 shares during the period. Finally, Lasalle Investment Management Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ventas by 1,135.1% during the third quarter. Lasalle Investment Management Securities LLC now owns 1,552,880 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $108,686,000 after purchasing an additional 1,427,151 shares during the period. 94.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Ventas

Ventas, Inc (NYSE: VTR) is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that specializes in healthcare-related real estate. The company acquires, owns and manages a diversified portfolio of properties serving the healthcare continuum, including senior housing communities, skilled nursing facilities, medical office buildings, life science and research centers, and other properties leased to healthcare providers and operators. Ventas generates revenue through long-term leases, property management and selective development activities focused on meeting the real estate needs of the healthcare sector.

Ventas’ business model combines property ownership with active asset management and capital markets activity.