Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Sells 112,020 Shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. cut its stake in shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,329,154 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 112,020 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Ventas were worth $85,239,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in VTR. First Community Trust NA bought a new stake in Ventas in the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. ORG Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ventas in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC bought a new position in Ventas during the second quarter worth about $41,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Ventas in the 3rd quarter worth about $48,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial bought a new stake in Ventas in the 2nd quarter valued at about $51,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.18% of the company’s stock.

Ventas Stock Performance

NYSE:VTR opened at $63.50 on Friday. Ventas, Inc. has a twelve month low of $41.45 and a twelve month high of $67.61. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $64.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $56.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.63 billion, a PE ratio of -379.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.36.

Ventas Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 1st were issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.83%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 1st. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -1,058.76%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Debra A. Cafaro sold 121,248 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.17, for a total transaction of $8,022,980.16. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 986,717 shares in the company, valued at approximately $65,291,063.89. The trade was a 10.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Peter J. Bulgarelli sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.99, for a total transaction of $389,940.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 90,795 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,900,767.05. This trade represents a 6.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 140,454 shares of company stock worth $9,263,815 in the last three months. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on VTR. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Ventas from $64.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Ventas from $52.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Ventas from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $61.00 to $71.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Scotiabank raised their price target on Ventas from $59.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Ventas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $63.63.

Ventas Company Profile

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.