Welltower (NYSE:WELL) Rating Increased to Buy at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Welltower (NYSE:WELL) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Thursday, MarketBeat reports. Jefferies Financial Group currently has $147.00 price objective on the real estate investment trust’s stock, up from their prior price objective of $132.00.

A number of other analysts have also recently issued reports on WELL. Raymond James increased their target price on Welltower from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. StockNews.com raised shares of Welltower from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $135.00 target price (up previously from $134.00) on shares of Welltower in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Scotiabank boosted their price target on Welltower from $133.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 25th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on Welltower from $136.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $127.63.

Welltower Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:WELL opened at $124.72 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $132.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $122.52. The company has a market capitalization of $77.66 billion, a PE ratio of 82.05, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.20. Welltower has a 52 week low of $85.40 and a 52 week high of $140.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 4.10 and a current ratio of 4.10.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.04 by ($0.31). Welltower had a return on equity of 3.20% and a net margin of 12.22%. The business had revenue of $2.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.95 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.92 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 23.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Welltower will post 4.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Welltower Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 13th were issued a dividend of $0.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.15%. Welltower’s payout ratio is 176.32%.

Institutional Trading of Welltower

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WELL. First Foundation Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Welltower in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Welltower during the second quarter worth $30,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in Welltower by 37.0% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 289 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Welltower in the third quarter valued at $50,000. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Welltower in the third quarter valued at about $59,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.80% of the company’s stock.

Welltower Company 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.