Citigroup Inc. Decreases Position in Ventas, Inc. $VTR

Citigroup Inc. decreased its position in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 73.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 622,466 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 1,693,878 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. owned about 0.13% of Ventas worth $43,566,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in VTR. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Ventas by 856.1% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 7,926 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $545,000 after acquiring an additional 7,097 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Ventas by 6.8% in the first 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 last quarter. Woodline Partners LP grew its position in shares of Ventas by 46.8% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 36,826 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,532,000 after purchasing an additional 11,739 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 12,233 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC raised its position in shares of Ventas by 36.1% during the 2nd quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 69,246 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $4,373,000 after purchasing an additional 18,355 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.18% of the company’s stock.

Ventas Stock Down 0.1%

VTR opened at $86.54 on Wednesday. Ventas, Inc. has a 12 month low of $60.15 and a 12 month high of $87.24. The business has a 50-day moving average of $79.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $74.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 160.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.77.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.89 by ($0.74). Ventas had a return on equity of 2.09% and a net margin of 4.31%.The company had revenue of ($1,229.71) million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.53 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.81 earnings per share. Ventas’s revenue was up 21.7% on a year-over-year basis. Ventas has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.780-3.880 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. This is an increase from Ventas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 355.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Robert F. Probst sold 29,930 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.25, for a total value of $2,312,092.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 138,434 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,694,026.50. This trade represents a 17.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Carey S. Roberts sold 35,532 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.00, for a total transaction of $3,020,220.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 72,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,184,175. This represents a 32.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 86,106 shares of company stock valued at $6,931,397. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on VTR shares. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Ventas from $83.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $93.00 price objective on shares of Ventas in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $93.00 target price on shares of Ventas in a research note on Monday, December 15th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $85.00 target price on shares of Ventas in a report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Ventas from $88.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $86.87.

Ventas 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.