Blue Chip Partners LLC Sells 4,980 Shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Blue Chip Partners LLC lessened its stake in shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) by 10.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 40,939 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 4,980 shares during the period. Blue Chip Partners LLC’s holdings in American Tower were worth $7,509,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AMT. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of American Tower by 3.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 21,173,423 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $4,924,091,000 after purchasing an additional 635,726 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of American Tower by 1.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,213,613 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,599,074,000 after acquiring an additional 204,426 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of American Tower by 25.4% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 10,642,133 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,474,934,000 after acquiring an additional 2,152,646 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of American Tower by 4.9% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,208,967 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,211,397,000 after acquiring an additional 243,061 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in American Tower by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,422,273 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $981,455,000 after purchasing an additional 38,436 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.69% of the company’s stock.

American Tower Stock Down 0.3 %

American Tower stock opened at $189.41 on Monday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $186.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $208.71. American Tower Co. has a 1-year low of $170.46 and a 1-year high of $243.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $88.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 79.92, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.69.

American Tower Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 27th were paid a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 27th. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.42%. American Tower’s payout ratio is currently 273.42%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 16,567 shares of American Tower stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.10, for a total transaction of $3,000,283.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 62,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,371,631.20. The trade was a 20.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Citizens Jmp upgraded American Tower to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of American Tower from $221.00 to $204.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup reduced their target price on American Tower from $255.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of American Tower from $215.00 to $214.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, JMP Securities assumed coverage on American Tower in a research report on Monday, January 27th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $225.00 target price for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $225.79.

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.