American Healthcare REIT, Inc. (NYSE:AHR) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

American Healthcare REIT, Inc. (NYSE:AHR) saw a significant growth in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,510,000 shares, a growth of 30.0% from the August 15th total of 3,470,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,640,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.8 days. Approximately 3.4% of the shares of the company are sold short.

American Healthcare REIT Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AHR traded down $0.22 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $24.36. The company had a trading volume of 1,881,507 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,214,613. American Healthcare REIT has a one year low of $12.63 and a one year high of $25.10. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $18.70 and its 200 day simple moving average is $15.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

American Healthcare REIT (NYSE:AHR) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The company reported $0.01 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.29 by ($0.28). American Healthcare REIT had a negative net margin of 1.99% and a negative return on equity of 2.20%. The firm had revenue of $504.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $506.55 million. American Healthcare REIT’s quarterly revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that American Healthcare REIT will post 1.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Healthcare REIT Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 20th.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AHR has been the subject of several research reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on American Healthcare REIT from $17.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Truist Financial increased their price objective on American Healthcare REIT from $17.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of American Healthcare REIT from $19.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. KeyCorp raised their price target on shares of American Healthcare REIT from $16.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, JMP Securities boosted their price objective on shares of American Healthcare REIT from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $20.38.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Healthcare REIT

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of AHR. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of American Healthcare REIT in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Amalgamated Bank acquired a new stake in American Healthcare REIT in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of American Healthcare REIT during the second quarter worth $45,000. CWM LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Healthcare REIT during the second quarter worth $58,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank bought a new position in shares of American Healthcare REIT in the 2nd quarter valued at $110,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 16.68% of the company’s stock.

American Healthcare REIT Company Profile

Formed by the successful merger of Griffin-American Healthcare REIT III and Griffin-American Healthcare REIT IV, as well as the acquisition of the business and operations of American Healthcare Investors, American Healthcare REIT is one of the larger healthcare-focused real estate investment trusts globally with assets totaling approximately $4.2 billion in gross investment value.