New York State Common Retirement Fund Reduces Stock Holdings in Ventas, Inc. $VTR

New York State Common Retirement Fund cut its stake in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 260,114 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 8,000 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned approximately 0.06% of Ventas worth $18,205,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of VTR. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Ventas by 856.1% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 7,926 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $545,000 after purchasing an additional 7,097 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in Ventas by 6.8% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 8,373 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $576,000 after purchasing an additional 536 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP boosted its position in Ventas by 46.8% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 36,826 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,532,000 after acquiring an additional 11,739 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth raised its position in shares of Ventas by 130.4% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 21,613 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,486,000 after buying an additional 12,233 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ventas during the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on VTR shares. KeyCorp raised their price objective on Ventas from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Ventas from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $93.00 price target on shares of Ventas in a report on Monday, January 5th. Citigroup raised their price target on Ventas from $80.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Ventas from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $81.63.

Ventas Stock Performance

NYSE:VTR opened at $77.65 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $78.20 and its 200-day moving average is $72.84. The company has a market cap of $36.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 149.33, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.32. Ventas, Inc. has a 52-week low of $58.72 and a 52-week high of $81.89.

Ventas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 369.23%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 10,322 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.26, for a total value of $797,477.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,145,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $88,516,395.70. This represents a 0.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Robert F. Probst sold 29,930 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.25, for a total value of $2,312,092.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 138,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,694,026.50. This trade represents a 17.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 156,103 shares of company stock worth $12,054,768. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Ventas Company Profile

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.