Chicago-based Ventas, Inc. (VTR) is a leading real estate investment trust focused on delivering strong, sustainable shareholder returns by enabling exceptional environments that benefit a large and growing aging population. With a market cap of $23.6 billion, Ventas operates numerous senior housing communities, providing valuable services to residents.
The REIT has substantially outperformed the broader market over the past year. Over the past 52 weeks, VTR has rallied 40.4%, surpassing the S&P 500 Index’s ($SPX) 26.1% returns. In 2024, Ventas is up 17.2% compared to SPX’s 16.5% gains on a YTD basis.
Zooming in further, VTR has also outperformed the JPM Realty Income ETF’s (JPRE) 16.6% returns over the past 52 weeks and a 6.3% gain on a YTD basis.
Ventas had a strong start to fiscal 2024 and continued the momentum in Q2. VTR stock jumped 2% following the release of its Q2 earnings on Aug. 1. The company reported an 8.6% revenue growth year over year to $1.2 billion and a 6.7% growth in normalized funds from operations (FFO) attributable to stockholders per share to $0.80.
For fiscal 2024, ending in December, analysts expect Ventas to report an FFO per share growth of 5.7% annually to $3.16. The company’s earnings surprise history is robust. It beat or matched the consensus estimate in each of the last four quarters.
Among the 19 analysts covering the stock, the consensus rating is a “Moderate Buy.” That’s based on 11 “Strong Buy” ratings, two “Moderate Buys,” and six “Holds.”
This configuration has been consistent over the past months.
On Aug. 8, RBC Capital analyst Michael Carroll maintained a “Buy” rating with a price target of $63.
Although VTR is trading slightly at a premium to its mean price target of $58.36, the Street-high target of $69 represents a potential upside of 18.1% from current price levels.
On the date of publication, Aditya Sarawgi did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
