Analysts Set SBA Communications Co. (NASDAQ:SBAC) PT at $257.23

SBA Communications Co. (NASDAQ:SBAC) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, nine have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $257.23.

A number of research analysts recently commented on SBAC shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of SBA Communications from $212.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on SBA Communications from $228.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on SBA Communications from $232.00 to $252.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on SBA Communications from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of SBA Communications from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th.

SBA Communications Price Performance

Shares of SBAC opened at $221.09 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.68. SBA Communications has a 1 year low of $183.64 and a 1 year high of $258.76. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $236.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $216.02.

SBA Communications (NASDAQ:SBAC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The technology company reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.17 by ($0.77). SBA Communications had a net margin of 25.76% and a negative return on equity of 13.13%. The business had revenue of $667.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $669.29 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.34 EPS. SBA Communications’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that SBA Communications will post 12.56 earnings per share for the current year.

SBA Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.77%. SBA Communications’s payout ratio is 61.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling at SBA Communications

In related news, EVP Donald Day sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.86, for a total value of $364,290.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,998 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,213,814.28. This represents a 23.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director George R. Krouse, Jr. sold 325 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.58, for a total transaction of $71,363.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,084 shares in the company, valued at $1,775,084.72. This trade represents a 3.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of SBA Communications

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in SBA Communications by 2,821.5% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,216,094 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $292,714,000 after purchasing an additional 1,174,469 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of SBA Communications by 377.6% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 886,384 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $213,353,000 after buying an additional 700,791 shares in the last quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC purchased a new position in shares of SBA Communications in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $134,738,000. Long Pond Capital LP bought a new position in shares of SBA Communications during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $83,687,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in SBA Communications by 500.0% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 369,037 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $72,375,000 after acquiring an additional 307,530 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.35% of the company’s stock.

SBA Communications Company Profile

SBA Communications Corporation is a leading independent owner and operator of wireless communications infrastructure including towers, buildings, rooftops, distributed antenna systems (DAS) and small cells. With a portfolio of more than 39,000 communications sites throughout the Americas, Africa and in Asia, SBA is listed on NASDAQ under the symbol SBAC.