Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the seventeen brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and fourteen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $98.1667.

Several research firms recently issued reports on VTR. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Ventas from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Ventas from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Ventas from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Barclays lifted their price target on Ventas from $99.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Ventas from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th.

Ventas Stock Performance

Shares of VTR opened at $91.18 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 168.85, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.69. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $92.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $87.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. Ventas has a 12 month low of $66.38 and a 12 month high of $101.60.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.68 billion. Ventas had a net margin of 4.08% and a return on equity of 1.99%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.87 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Ventas will post 3.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Ventas

In related news, Director Michael J. Embler bought 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $78.81 per share, for a total transaction of $197,025.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 19,202 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,513,309.62. The trade was a 14.97% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ventas

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its position in Ventas by 9,549.4% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 65,366,390 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $5,804,535,000 after purchasing an additional 64,688,974 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ventas during the second quarter valued at about $4,953,439,000. Capital World Investors purchased a new position in shares of Ventas during the fourth quarter valued at about $594,116,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Ventas in the fourth quarter worth about $474,571,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in Ventas during the second quarter valued at approximately $501,850,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.18% of the company’s stock.

About Ventas

Ventas, Inc (NYSE: VTR) is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that specializes in healthcare-related real estate. The company acquires, owns and manages a diversified portfolio of properties serving the healthcare continuum, including senior housing communities, skilled nursing facilities, medical office buildings, life science and research centers, and other properties leased to healthcare providers and operators. Ventas generates revenue through long-term leases, property management and selective development activities focused on meeting the real estate needs of the healthcare sector.

Ventas’ business model combines property ownership with active asset management and capital markets activity.