Westpac Banking Corp Takes Position in Welltower Inc. $WELL

Westpac Banking Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 70,125 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $15,916,000. Welltower makes up approximately 1.0% of Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest holding.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Welltower during the 4th quarter worth about $5,466,264,000. Cardano Risk Management B.V. grew its stake in Welltower by 955.3% during the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 9,513,540 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,765,808,000 after acquiring an additional 8,612,016 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors increased its holdings in shares of Welltower by 153.0% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 10,744,520 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,994,290,000 after purchasing an additional 6,497,258 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Welltower by 5.5% in the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 78,049,214 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $17,714,830,000 after purchasing an additional 4,045,458 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Welltower by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 92,421,471 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $17,154,349,000 after purchasing an additional 2,643,088 shares in the last quarter. 94.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on WELL. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Welltower from $228.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Welltower from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Welltower from $237.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of Welltower from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on shares of Welltower in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $226.00 price target on the stock. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $246.11.

Welltower Stock Up 1.1%

WELL opened at $239.95 on Friday. Welltower Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $163.75 and a fifty-two week high of $255.20. The business has a 50-day moving average of $232.48 and a 200-day moving average of $215.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 3.16 and a quick ratio of 3.16. The company has a market capitalization of $172.94 billion, a PE ratio of 110.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.76.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.66 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $3.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.40 billion. Welltower had a net margin of 12.15% and a return on equity of 3.56%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 39.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.28 earnings per share. Welltower has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.360-6.440 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Welltower Inc. will post 6.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Welltower Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 12th were paid a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. This is a boost from Welltower’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 12th. Welltower’s dividend payout ratio is presently 155.96%.

About Welltower

Welltower Inc (NYSE: WELL) is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires and manages real estate serving the health care industry. The company specializes in healthcare infrastructure, owning and operating a diversified portfolio of senior housing, post-acute and long-term care communities, and outpatient medical properties. Welltower’s assets are designed to support the delivery of health care services through a combination of leased properties, joint ventures, and other capital arrangements with health care operators and providers.

The company’s property types include assisted living, memory care, independent living and skilled nursing facilities, as well as medical office buildings and other outpatient-care real estate such as ambulatory surgery centers and specialty clinics.