American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) Shares Purchased by Private Advisor Group LLC

Private Advisor Group LLC grew its stake in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) by 54.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 128,880 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 45,452 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in American Tower were worth $23,638,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AMT. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake in American Tower by 269.0% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 107 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Tower during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Tower during the third quarter worth $31,000. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new position in American Tower in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in American Tower in the third quarter valued at $34,000. 92.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Tower Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE:AMT opened at $188.55 on Thursday. American Tower Co. has a 12-month low of $170.46 and a 12-month high of $243.56. 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 stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $185.89 and its 200-day simple moving average is $207.99. The firm has a market cap of $88.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 79.56, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.84.

American Tower Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 27th were paid a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.44%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 27th. American Tower’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 273.42%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on AMT shares. StockNews.com downgraded American Tower from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of American Tower from $215.00 to $195.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of American Tower from $255.00 to $245.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Citizens Jmp upgraded shares of American Tower to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their price objective on shares of American Tower from $236.00 to $220.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $225.79.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 16,567 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 62,792 shares in the company, valued at $11,371,631.20. This trade represents a 20.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.