Mizuho Securities USA LLC Increases Position in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC raised its position in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) by 46.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 44,288 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,000 shares during the quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s holdings in American Tower were worth $8,123,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in American Tower by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 21,173,423 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $4,924,091,000 after purchasing an additional 635,726 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in American Tower by 1.9% in the 3rd 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 purchasing an additional 204,426 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in American Tower by 25.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 10,642,133 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,474,934,000 after purchasing an additional 2,152,646 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in American Tower by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,316,312 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $975,065,000 after purchasing an additional 107,345 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in American Tower by 0.9% in 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 last quarter. 92.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Tower Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:AMT opened at $216.41 on Friday. American Tower Co. has a 52 week low of $170.46 and a 52 week high of $243.56. The company’s 50 day moving average is $195.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $205.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27. The company has a market cap of $101.16 billion, a PE ratio of 91.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.85.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.79 by $0.83. American Tower had a net margin of 10.05% and a return on equity of 22.01%. The company had revenue of $2.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.29 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that American Tower Co. will post 10.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Tower Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Investors of record on Friday, April 11th will be given a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.14%. This is an increase from American Tower’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.62. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. American Tower’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 141.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of American Tower from $260.00 to $234.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 12th. JMP Securities assumed coverage on shares of American Tower in a report on Monday, January 27th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $225.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of American Tower from $219.00 to $213.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 24th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of American Tower from $214.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of American Tower from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $229.43.

Insider Activity at American Tower

In related news, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 16,567 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.10, for a total value of $3,000,283.70. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 62,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,371,631.20. This trade represents a 20.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

American Tower Company Profile

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.