Bleakley Financial Group LLC Acquires 1,648 Shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Bleakley Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) by 23.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,549 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,648 shares during the quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC’s holdings in American Tower were worth $1,846,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of American Tower by 101,474.3% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,474,342 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,219,094,000 after acquiring an additional 10,464,030 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of American Tower during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,008,567,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of American Tower by 2,329.8% during the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 1,329,779 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $218,682,000 after acquiring an additional 1,275,052 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in shares of American Tower by 15.4% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 7,231,486 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,532,063,000 after acquiring an additional 962,800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of American Tower by 16,195.9% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 849,340 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,833,560,000 after acquiring an additional 844,128 shares during the last quarter. 92.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Tower Stock Performance

Shares of American Tower stock opened at $181.96 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $84.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.29. American Tower Co. has a 12 month low of $154.58 and a 12 month high of $219.10. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $194.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $193.13.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.94 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.10 by ($1.16). The firm had revenue of $2.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.74 billion. American Tower had a net margin of 13.31% and a return on equity of 12.80%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.34 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that American Tower Co. will post 10.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Tower Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 26th. Investors of record on Friday, April 12th will be given a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 11th. American Tower’s payout ratio is currently 213.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on AMT. Barclays increased their target price on American Tower from $224.00 to $234.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on American Tower from $236.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. HSBC initiated coverage on American Tower in a report on Thursday, December 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $245.00 price target on the stock. Mizuho initiated coverage on American Tower in a report on Monday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $205.00 price target on the stock. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on American Tower from $235.00 to $228.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $214.91.

Insider Activity at American Tower

In related news, Director Pamela D. A. Reeve sold 5,054 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.46, for a total transaction of $962,584.84. Following the sale, the director now owns 18,545 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,532,080.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Pamela D. A. Reeve sold 5,054 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.46, for a total transaction of $962,584.84. Following the sale, the director now owns 18,545 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,532,080.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 11,510 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.71, for a total value of $2,367,722.10. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 62,969 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,953,352.99. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

American Tower 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.