Legal & General Group Plc Grows Stake in CareTrust REIT, Inc. $CTRE

Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in CareTrust REIT, Inc. (NYSE:CTRE) by 10.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,558,522 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 149,633 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc owned approximately 0.70% of CareTrust REIT worth $56,356,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its stake in shares of CareTrust REIT by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 40,781 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,475,000 after buying an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd boosted its stake in shares of CareTrust REIT by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 10,309 shares of the company’s stock worth $373,000 after buying an additional 291 shares during the last quarter. Heritage Wealth Advisors boosted its stake in shares of CareTrust REIT by 42.9% in the 3rd quarter. Heritage Wealth Advisors now owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of CareTrust REIT by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. now owns 10,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $378,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its stake in shares of CareTrust REIT by 13.4% in the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,615 shares of the company’s stock worth $91,000 after buying an additional 309 shares during the last quarter. 87.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CareTrust REIT Stock Performance

NYSE:CTRE opened at $40.81 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.38. CareTrust REIT, Inc. has a 52-week low of $27.81 and a 52-week high of $43.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 2.37 and a current ratio of 2.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.64 billion, a PE ratio of 26.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.76.

CareTrust REIT Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. This is a positive change from CareTrust REIT’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. CareTrust REIT’s dividend payout ratio is presently 100.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on CTRE. Mizuho set a $45.00 price target on shares of CareTrust REIT in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of CareTrust REIT from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of CareTrust REIT from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. UBS Group lifted their target price on CareTrust REIT from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered CareTrust REIT from a “buy (a)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Tuesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.64.

About CareTrust REIT

CareTrust REIT, Inc is a real estate investment trust based in Deerfield Beach, Florida, specializing in the ownership, acquisition and management of net-leased healthcare properties. The company primarily focuses on seniors housing and post-acute care facilities, entering into long-term, triple-net lease agreements with leading operators in the skilled nursing, assisted living, memory care, inpatient rehabilitation and specialty hospital sectors. Through its portfolio, CareTrust REIT aims to provide investors with stable and predictable rental income while supporting the ongoing demand for quality healthcare real estate across the United States.

Since its initial public offering in September 2013, CareTrust REIT has pursued a disciplined acquisition strategy, targeting properties in primary and select secondary markets.