Ieq Capital LLC Buys 1,724 Shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

Ieq Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 9.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 20,719 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,724 shares during the period. Ieq Capital LLC’s holdings in Ventas were worth $1,220,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of VTR. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its position in shares of Ventas by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 34,973 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,060,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its stake in Ventas by 17.0% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,221 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $72,000 after buying an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank lifted its position in shares of Ventas by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 3,308 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $195,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ventas by 66.2% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 527 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Ventas by 4.5% in the third quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. now owns 5,434 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $349,000 after acquiring an additional 232 shares in the last quarter. 94.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ventas Trading Up 2.6 %

Shares of VTR stock opened at $67.81 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 356.93, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.37. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $60.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $62.02. Ventas, Inc. has a 1 year low of $41.45 and a 1 year high of $68.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by $0.83. Ventas had a return on equity of 0.82% and a net margin of 1.65%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.83%. This is a boost from Ventas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Ventas’s payout ratio is presently 1,010.53%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Gregory R. Liebbe sold 3,866 shares of Ventas stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total transaction of $243,558.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $716,373. The trade was a 25.37 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Ventas from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com upgraded Ventas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Baird R W upgraded shares of Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Wedbush lifted their price objective on shares of Ventas from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Ventas from $71.00 to $68.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.14.

About Ventas

Ventas Inc (NYSE: VTR) is a leading S&P 500 real estate investment trust focused on delivering strong, sustainable shareholder returns by enabling exceptional environments that benefit a large and growing aging population. The Company's growth is fueled by its senior housing communities, which provide valuable services to residents and enable them to thrive in supported environments.