Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super Takes Position in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super acquired a new stake in shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 54,685 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $10,030,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new stake in American Tower during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Graney & King LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Tower during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of American Tower during the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new stake in American Tower during the fourth quarter valued at about $46,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in American Tower by 113.9% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 261 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. 92.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Tower Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AMT opened at $217.66 on Tuesday. American Tower Co. has a 52 week low of $170.46 and a 52 week high of $243.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27. The firm has a market cap of $101.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 91.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.87. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $205.92 and its 200 day moving average price is $202.56.

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

American Tower Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be issued a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. This is a boost from American Tower’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.62. American Tower’s payout ratio is 141.37%.

Insider Transactions at American Tower

In other American Tower news, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 16,567 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.10, for a total value of $3,000,283.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 62,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,371,631.20. The trade was a 20.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Scotiabank lowered their price target on shares of American Tower from $236.00 to $220.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. 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 target on the stock. Mizuho decreased their price objective on American Tower from $221.00 to $204.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citizens Jmp upgraded American Tower to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on American Tower in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $250.00 price target for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $232.07.

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.