6,922 Shares in Ventas, Inc. $VTR Purchased by Groupe la Francaise

Groupe la Francaise purchased a new stake in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 6,922 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $566,000.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Ventas by 856.1% during 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 period. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in Ventas by 6.8% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 8,373 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $576,000 after purchasing an additional 536 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP lifted its position in Ventas by 46.8% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 36,826 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,532,000 after purchasing an additional 11,739 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its stake in Ventas by 130.4% during the first 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, Gamco Investors INC. ET AL acquired a new stake in Ventas during the second quarter worth $805,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.18% of the company’s stock.

Ventas Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:VTR opened at $93.94 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.44 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $88.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $85.58. Ventas, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $65.82 and a fifty-two week high of $101.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 173.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.70.

Ventas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were paid a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Ventas’s payout ratio is 385.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on VTR shares. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $100.00 price objective on shares of Ventas in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their target price on shares of Ventas from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on shares of Ventas in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $94.00 target price on the stock. KeyCorp upped their target price on shares of Ventas from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Ventas in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $99.00 price target for the company. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $97.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ventas news, Director Michael J. Embler bought 2,500 shares of Ventas stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $78.81 per share, with a total value of $197,025.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 19,202 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,513,309.62. The trade was a 14.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Walter C. Rakowich sold 1,152 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.20, for a total value of $103,910.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 28,349 shares in the company, valued at $2,557,079.80. The trade was a 3.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

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.