Brokerages Set Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) Target Price at $99.11

Shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seventeen ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $99.3889.

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Ventas from $98.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Ventas from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price objective on shares of Ventas from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Ventas from $96.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price objective on Ventas from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ventas

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Deutsche Bank AG grew its position in Ventas by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 3,904,293 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $302,114,000 after buying an additional 27,688 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in Ventas by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,868,962 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $222,000,000 after acquiring an additional 70,459 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Ventas in the 4th quarter valued at $474,571,000. Adelante Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ventas during the 2nd quarter valued at $52,737,000. Finally, Andra AP fonden lifted its position in shares of Ventas by 514.0% during the 2nd quarter. Andra AP fonden now owns 127,700 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $11,340,000 after acquiring an additional 106,902 shares during the period. 94.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ventas Price Performance

Shares of VTR stock opened at $86.60 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. Ventas has a 12-month low of $66.93 and a 12-month high of $101.60. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $92.14 and a 200-day moving average of $88.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 160.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.70.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.01. Ventas had a return on equity of 1.99% and a net margin of 4.08%.The firm had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.87 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 21.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ventas will post 3.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Ventas Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be given a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 30th. Ventas’s payout ratio is currently 385.19%.

Ventas Company Profile

Ventas, Inc is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns and manages a diversified portfolio of healthcare and senior living properties. Its real estate platform includes senior housing communities, medical office buildings, life science and innovation centers, and other healthcare-related facilities.

The company generally leases or operates its properties through relationships with healthcare providers, senior living operators, universities, and research institutions. Its properties support services such as independent and assisted living, skilled nursing, outpatient care, physician practices, medical research, and biotechnology development.

Ventas serves major healthcare and life science markets in the United States and Canada.