Ventas (NYSE:VTR) Upgraded to Strong-Buy at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Ventas (NYSE:VTR) to a strong-buy rating in a research note published on Tuesday morning,Zacks reports.

VTR has been the subject of a number of other reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $100.00 target price on shares of Ventas in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Ventas from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price target on Ventas from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings upgraded Ventas from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Ventas from $99.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ventas has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $99.11.

Ventas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VTR opened at $88.49 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.44 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.39 billion, a PE ratio of 163.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 0.70. Ventas has a 1-year low of $66.54 and a 1-year high of $101.60. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $92.72 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $88.01.

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.96 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 in the previous year, the company posted $0.87 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Ventas will post 3.89 EPS for the current year.

Ventas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be issued a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Ventas’s dividend payout ratio is 385.19%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dynamic Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in Ventas in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Silvant Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ventas in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ventas in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ventas in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Reflection Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Ventas in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. 94.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Ventas

Ventas, Inc is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns and manages a diversified portfolio of healthcare and senior living properties. Its real estate platform includes senior housing communities, medical office buildings, life science and innovation centers, and other healthcare-related facilities.

The company generally leases or operates its properties through relationships with healthcare providers, senior living operators, universities, and research institutions. Its properties support services such as independent and assisted living, skilled nursing, outpatient care, physician practices, medical research, and biotechnology development.

Ventas serves major healthcare and life science markets in the United States and Canada.