July 28 (Reuters) - Real estate investment trust

Welltower ( WELL ) raised its forecast for annual funds from

operations on Monday, banking on steady demand for its assisted

living and senior housing properties.

The company expects 2025 normalized FFO, a key performance

measure for REITs, to be in the range of $5.06 to $5.14 per

share, compared to a previous projection of $4.90 to $5.04 per

share. Analysts, on average, expect $4.97 apiece, according to

data compiled by LSEG.

The REIT owns housing, outpatient medical centers and

healthcare properties with a focus on older adults and assisted

living. It operates in the United States, Canada and the UK.

It reported quarterly normalized FFO of $1.28 per share for

the quarter, up 21.9% from last year.

The growing number of elderly Americans and their rising

healthcare expenditures have fueled increased demand for senior

living facilities.

Welltower's ( WELL ) same-store net operating income from its senior

housing properties rose 23.4% in the quarter.

The Ohio-based company posted a net profit of 45 cents per

share for the quarter, compared with a net profit of 42 cents

per share reported a year earlier.