Groupe la Francaise Raises Stake in Welltower Inc. $WELL

Groupe la Francaise increased its holdings in Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL) by 40.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 106,338 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 30,430 shares during the quarter. Groupe la Francaise’s holdings in Welltower were worth $16,319,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT increased its stake in shares of Welltower by 4.2% in the second quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 1,604 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $247,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC grew its position in Welltower by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,460 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $225,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Rise Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Welltower by 23.3% during the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 365 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Welltower by 5.1% during the 2nd quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. now owns 1,461 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $242,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Welltower by 5.6% in the 2nd quarter. Orion Capital Management LLC now owns 1,362 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $209,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the period. 94.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Welltower Stock Performance

NYSE:WELL opened at $203.13 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 4.19 and a current ratio of 5.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $139.41 billion, a PE ratio of 140.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.92. Welltower Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $123.11 and a fifty-two week high of $209.05. The company has a fifty day moving average of $184.20 and a two-hundred day moving average of $168.25.

Welltower (NYSE:WELL) last released its earnings results on Monday, October 27th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.04. Welltower had a net margin of 9.69% and a return on equity of 2.71%. The business had revenue of $2.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.70 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.11 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 30.7% on a year-over-year basis. Welltower has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.240-5.300 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Welltower Inc. will post 4.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Welltower Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 11th were issued a dividend of $0.74 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 10th. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Welltower’s dividend payout ratio is presently 204.14%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WELL has been the topic of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Welltower in a report on Monday. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Welltower from $175.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, September 15th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Welltower from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 20th. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on shares of Welltower from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Welltower from $182.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $193.93.

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.