Vanderbilt University Decreases Position in Welltower Inc. $WELL

Vanderbilt University cut its stake in Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL) by 7.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 35,747 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 2,695 shares during the quarter. Welltower makes up approximately 1.0% of Vanderbilt University’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Vanderbilt University’s holdings in Welltower were worth $5,495,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. SouthState Corp lifted its stake in Welltower by 704.8% in the 1st quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 169 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Welltower in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Welltower in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Welltower in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Welltower in the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. 94.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Welltower Stock Performance

NYSE:WELL opened at $175.65 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 4.19 and a current ratio of 4.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $117.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 99.24, a PEG ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $167.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $156.47. Welltower Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $122.34 and a fifty-two week high of $180.40.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.22 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $2.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.49 billion. Welltower had a net margin of 12.18% and a return on equity of 3.38%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 39.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.05 EPS. Welltower has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.060-5.14 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Welltower Inc. will post 4.88 EPS for the current year.

Welltower Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th were given a $0.74 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 12th. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. This is a boost from Welltower’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Welltower’s dividend payout ratio is 167.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WELL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Welltower in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of Welltower in a report on Wednesday. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $195.00 price objective for the company. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of Welltower from $150.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 23rd. Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of Welltower from $172.00 to $181.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 28th. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Welltower in a report on Friday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $180.62.

Welltower Profile

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.