Quantbot Technologies LP Decreases Stock Holdings in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

Quantbot Technologies LP trimmed its holdings in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 63.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 37,719 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 65,221 shares during the quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Ventas were worth $2,221,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ventas during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Ventas by 66.2% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 527 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the period. Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ventas during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ventas during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Ventas by 1,039.4% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 809 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 738 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.18% of the company’s stock.

Ventas Stock Performance

NYSE:VTR opened at $66.91 on Monday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $64.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $63.11. The company has a market cap of $29.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 352.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. Ventas, Inc. has a 52 week low of $41.45 and a 52 week high of $71.04.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last posted its quarterly 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 net margin of 1.65% and a return on equity of 0.82%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.87%. This is an increase from Ventas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Ventas’s payout ratio is presently 1,010.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VTR has been the topic of several analyst reports. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Ventas from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Baird R W raised Ventas from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Ventas from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Mizuho boosted their target price on Ventas from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Ventas from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.90.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Gregory R. Liebbe sold 3,866 shares of the business’s 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 11,371 shares in the company, valued at approximately $716,373. The trade was a 25.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 41,294 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.08, for a total transaction of $2,852,589.52. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,138,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $78,622,918.44. The trade was a 3.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 260,227 shares of company stock worth $17,769,097. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

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.