Capital Research Global Investors Raises Position in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) by 66.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,563,046 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,421,413 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors owned 1.83% of American Tower worth $1,570,547,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of American Tower during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,784,000. Destination Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of American Tower by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Destination Wealth Management now owns 94,992 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $22,091,000 after acquiring an additional 2,517 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of American Tower by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 19,990 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $4,649,000 after acquiring an additional 1,032 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in American Tower by 0.9% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,422,273 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $981,455,000 after purchasing an additional 38,436 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Trust Co. N.A. grew its stake in shares of American Tower by 19.3% in the 3rd quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. now owns 7,800 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,814,000 after buying an additional 1,260 shares during the period. 92.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Tower Stock Up 2.3 %

Shares of AMT stock opened at $223.03 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.69. The business’s fifty day moving average is $208.33 and its 200-day moving average is $202.65. American Tower Co. has a 1 year low of $170.46 and a 1 year high of $243.56. The stock has a market cap of $104.26 billion, a PE ratio of 94.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.87.

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

American Tower Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be given a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.05%. This is a boost from American Tower’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.62. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 11th. American Tower’s payout ratio is presently 141.37%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of American Tower to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on American Tower from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Citizens Jmp upgraded American Tower to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of American Tower from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Mizuho cut their target price on shares of American Tower from $221.00 to $204.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Tower presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $232.07.

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.