American Tower (NYSE:AMT) Shares Down 2.3%

Shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) fell 2.3% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $230.04 and last traded at $230.42. 399,009 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 2,299,603 shares. The stock had previously closed at $235.95.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on AMT shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of American Tower from $225.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of American Tower from $205.00 to $221.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of American Tower from $223.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of American Tower from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of American Tower from $212.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $233.29.

American Tower Trading Up 1.2 %

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $224.57 and a 200 day simple moving average of $202.44. The company has a market capitalization of $109.81 billion, a PE ratio of 53.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.42, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.92 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.52). American Tower had a return on equity of 23.06% and a net margin of 21.95%. The firm had revenue of $2.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.82 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.46 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that American Tower Co. will post 10.13 earnings per share for the current year.

American Tower Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be given a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 9th. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.76%. American Tower’s payout ratio is presently 146.61%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Olivier Puech sold 10,005 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.27, for a total value of $2,333,866.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 51,746 shares in the company, valued at $12,070,789.42. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other American Tower news, CEO Steven O. Vondran sold 21,537 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total value of $4,953,510.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 61,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,223,890. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Olivier Puech sold 10,005 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.27, for a total transaction of $2,333,866.35. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 51,746 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,070,789.42. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 33,723 shares of company stock valued at $7,795,397 in the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Tower

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AMT. NBT Bank N A NY lifted its holdings in shares of American Tower by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter. NBT Bank N A NY now owns 1,693 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $329,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. O Brien Greene & Co. Inc boosted its position in shares of American Tower by 2.3% in the second quarter. O Brien Greene & Co. Inc now owns 2,476 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $481,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Glassman Wealth Services grew its stake in shares of American Tower by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Glassman Wealth Services now owns 1,242 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $268,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. CFO4Life Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Tower by 5.4% during the 1st quarter. CFO4Life Group LLC now owns 1,119 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $221,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the period. Finally, Tyche Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in American Tower by 4.9% during the 2nd quarter. Tyche Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,245 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $242,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. 92.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About American Tower

American Tower, one of the largest global REITs, is a leading independent owner, operator and developer of multitenant communications real estate with a portfolio of over 224,000 communications sites and a highly interconnected footprint of U.S. data center facilities.