Advisors Asset Management Inc. Grows Stock Position in Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL)

Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL) by 16.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 53,386 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,461 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Welltower were worth $6,728,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WELL. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Welltower by 7.4% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 10,094 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,292,000 after buying an additional 696 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its stake in Welltower by 18.0% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 142,881 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $18,294,000 after buying an additional 21,757 shares during the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Welltower in the 3rd quarter valued at $64,000. Windle Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Welltower by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Windle Wealth LLC now owns 69,171 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $8,856,000 after acquiring an additional 312 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pathstone Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of Welltower by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 44,609 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $5,711,000 after acquiring an additional 548 shares during the last quarter. 94.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Welltower Trading Down 0.9 %

WELL opened at $149.92 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $142.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $134.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 4.22 and a quick ratio of 4.22. Welltower Inc. has a 12 month low of $87.87 and a 12 month high of $158.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $96.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 96.10, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.20.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.73. Welltower had a return on equity of 3.15% and a net margin of 11.91%. Sell-side analysts expect that Welltower Inc. will post 4.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Welltower Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were issued a $0.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.79%. Welltower’s payout ratio is 171.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on WELL. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Welltower from $141.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Welltower from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $146.00 to $168.00 in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Welltower from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $132.00 to $147.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Raymond James upped their target price on shares of Welltower from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Welltower from $221.00 to $242.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $156.46.

About Welltower

Welltower Inc (NYSE:WELL), a real estate investment trust (“REIT”) and S&P 500 company headquartered in Toledo, Ohio, is driving the transformation of health care infrastructure. Welltower invests with leading seniors housing operators, post-acute providers and health systems to fund the real estate infrastructure needed to scale innovative care delivery models and improve people’s wellness and overall health care experience.