Ventas (NYSE:VTR) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $87.87 and last traded at $86.7810, with a volume of 448779 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $86.44.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Ventas from $80.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. Scotiabank increased their target price on Ventas from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 13th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $85.00 price target on shares of Ventas in a report on Monday, February 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $93.00 price objective on shares of Ventas in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $93.00 price objective on shares of Ventas in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ventas has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $86.87.

Ventas Trading Up 0.2%

The company has a market capitalization of $41.14 billion, a PE ratio of 160.31, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $79.86 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $74.95.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by ($0.74). The business had revenue of ($1,229.71) million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.53 billion. Ventas had a net margin of 4.31% and a return on equity of 2.09%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.81 earnings per share. Ventas has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.780-3.880 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Ventas, Inc. will post 3.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Ventas Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. This is an increase from Ventas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 355.56%.

Insider Transactions at Ventas

In other Ventas news, EVP Carey S. Roberts sold 35,532 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.00, for a total transaction of $3,020,220.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 72,755 shares in the company, valued at $6,184,175. This represents a 32.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Robert F. Probst sold 29,930 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.25, for a total value of $2,312,092.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 138,434 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,694,026.50. This represents a 17.78% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 86,106 shares of company stock valued at $6,931,397. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ventas

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Investment Management Corp of Ontario boosted its stake in shares of Ventas by 1,019.0% in the second quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario now owns 133,061 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $8,403,000 after buying an additional 121,170 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S raised its holdings in Ventas by 97.7% in the 3rd quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 36,713 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,570,000 after acquiring an additional 18,146 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Ventas during the 2nd quarter valued at $17,568,000. SCS Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ventas during the 2nd quarter worth $13,788,000. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd increased its position in shares of Ventas by 28.5% in the third quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 83,524 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $5,846,000 after purchasing an additional 18,527 shares during the period. 94.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.