Norges Bank Invests $5.47 Billion in Welltower Inc. $WELL

Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 29,450,268 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $5,466,264,000. Welltower accounts for about 0.6% of Norges Bank’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. National Pension Service raised its position in Welltower by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,691,931 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $301,401,000 after buying an additional 34,532 shares during the last quarter. B&I Capital AG raised its position in Welltower by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. B&I Capital AG now owns 161,440 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $28,759,000 after buying an additional 8,650 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. acquired a new stake in Welltower in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,781,000. New York Life Investment Management LLC raised its position in Welltower by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 97,366 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $17,345,000 after buying an additional 4,019 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Benchmark Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Welltower in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $901,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.80% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WELL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Welltower from $236.00 to $248.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Welltower from $218.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Wall Street Zen raised Welltower from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Welltower from $237.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Welltower from $230.00 to $238.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $231.00.

Welltower Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WELL opened at $206.11 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $145.49 billion, a PE ratio of 102.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 4.31 and a quick ratio of 4.31. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $208.54 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $200.65. Welltower Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $148.60 and a fifty-two week high of $221.68.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.02 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.34. Welltower had a return on equity of 3.45% and a net margin of 11.96%.The company had revenue of $3.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.20 EPS. Welltower’s revenue was up 38.3% on a year-over-year basis. Welltower has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.210-6.350 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Welltower Inc. will post 6.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Welltower Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th were issued a $0.74 dividend. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 13th. Welltower’s dividend payout ratio is presently 146.53%.

About Welltower

Welltower Inc (NYSE: WELL) is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires and manages real estate serving the health care industry. The company specializes in healthcare infrastructure, owning and operating a diversified portfolio of senior housing, post-acute and long-term care communities, and outpatient medical properties. Welltower’s assets are designed to support the delivery of health care services through a combination of leased properties, joint ventures, and other capital arrangements with health care operators and providers.

The company’s property types include assisted living, memory care, independent living and skilled nursing facilities, as well as medical office buildings and other outpatient-care real estate such as ambulatory surgery centers and specialty clinics.