Is it smart to be bullish on Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)?
To the average investor, there are a multitude of gauges investors can use to track publicly traded companies. Some of the most innovative are hedge fund and insider trading interest. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the elite money managers can trounce the S&P 500 by a very impressive amount (see just how much).
Equally as key, positive insider trading sentiment is another way to analyze the financial markets. There are many incentives for an upper level exec to get rid of shares of his or her company, but just one, very obvious reason why they would buy. Several academic studies have demonstrated the market-beating potential of this strategy if “monkeys” know what to do (learn more here).
What’s more, we’re going to examine the latest info surrounding Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR).
What does the smart money think about Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)?
Heading into Q3, a total of 22 of the hedge funds we track held long positions in this stock, a change of 83% from the first quarter. With the smart money’s capital changing hands, there exists a few noteworthy hedge fund managers who were increasing their holdings meaningfully.
When using filings from the hedgies we track, AEW Capital Management, managed by Jeffrey Furber, holds the most valuable position in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR). AEW Capital Management has a $171.2 million position in the stock, comprising 4.5% of its 13F portfolio. Sitting at the No. 2 spot is Visium Asset Management, managed by Jacob Gottlieb, which held a $56.2 million position; the fund has 1.3% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Other peers that hold long positions include Ken Heebner’s Capital Growth Management, Phill Gross and Robert Atchinson’s Adage Capital Management and Cliff Asness’s AQR Capital Management.
As aggregate interest spiked, specific money managers were breaking ground themselves. AEW Capital Management, managed by Jeffrey Furber, established the largest position in Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR). AEW Capital Management had 171.2 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Jacob Gottlieb’s Visium Asset Management also initiated a $56.2 million position during the quarter. The following funds were also among the new VTR investors: Ken Heebner’s Capital Growth Management, Phill Gross and Robert Atchinson’s Adage Capital Management, and Cliff Asness’s AQR Capital Management.
How have insiders been trading Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR)?
Insider buying is most useful when the company we’re looking at has seen transactions within the past six months. Over the latest six-month time frame, Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) has experienced zero unique insiders purchasing, and zero insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
We’ll also examine the relationship between both of these indicators in other stocks similar to Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR). These stocks are Healthcare Realty Trust Inc (NYSE:HR), Healthcare Trust Of America Inc (NYSE:HTA), Omega Healthcare Investors Inc (NYSE:OHI), Health Care REIT, Inc. (NYSE:HCN), and HCP, Inc. (NYSE:HCP). This group of stocks are in the reit – healthcare facilities industry and their market caps are closest to VTR’s market cap.
