American Healthcare REIT, Inc. (NYSE:AHR) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

American Healthcare REIT, Inc. (NYSE:AHR) saw a significant decrease in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,370,000 shares, a decrease of 16.9% from the February 28th total of 7,670,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,850,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.4 days. Currently, 4.1% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AHR. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on American Healthcare REIT from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Citigroup reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Healthcare REIT in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. KeyCorp cut their target price on shares of American Healthcare REIT from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. JMP Securities set a $35.00 price target on shares of American Healthcare REIT in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $34.00 price objective on shares of American Healthcare REIT in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, American Healthcare REIT has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $33.33.

American Healthcare REIT Stock Performance

NYSE:AHR traded up $0.43 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $30.73. The stock had a trading volume of 2,538,777 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,732,924. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market cap of $4.84 billion and a P/E ratio of -64.01. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $29.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $27.66. American Healthcare REIT has a 12-month low of $12.81 and a 12-month high of $31.04.

American Healthcare REIT Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. American Healthcare REIT’s payout ratio is -370.37%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AHR. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in American Healthcare REIT by 79.8% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 94,112 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,456,000 after purchasing an additional 41,755 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of American Healthcare REIT in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $758,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Healthcare REIT by 407.8% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 356,497 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,305,000 after buying an additional 286,292 shares in the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management acquired a new position in American Healthcare REIT during the third quarter worth $1,129,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in American Healthcare REIT in the third quarter worth $5,552,000. 16.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About American Healthcare REIT

Formed by the successful merger of Griffin-American Healthcare REIT III and Griffin-American Healthcare REIT IV, as well as the acquisition of the business and operations of American Healthcare Investors, American Healthcare REIT is one of the larger healthcare-focused real estate investment trusts globally with assets totaling approximately $4.2 billion in gross investment value.