Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS Acquires 3,000 Shares of American Tower Corporation $AMT

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS grew its holdings in shares of American Tower Corporation (NYSE:AMT) by 88.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 6,400 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,000 shares during the period. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS’s holdings in American Tower were worth $1,048,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of American Tower during the 2nd quarter valued at about $7,490,943,000. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new position in American Tower in the second quarter worth about $1,096,186,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in American Tower in the second quarter worth about $638,829,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in American Tower in the second quarter valued at approximately $500,016,000. Finally, Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board acquired a new position in American Tower in the second quarter valued at approximately $291,867,000. 92.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Truist Financial upped their target price on American Tower from $207.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of American Tower in a report on Tuesday, October 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price target on American Tower from $214.00 to $212.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 20th. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Tower in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on American Tower from $240.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $216.11.

American Tower Stock Up 0.1%

AMT stock opened at $188.98 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $88.06 billion, a PE ratio of 26.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 0.85. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $177.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $177.70. American Tower Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $160.06 and a fifty-two week high of $202.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.64. American Tower had a net margin of 30.10% and a return on equity of 32.71%. The firm had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.76 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.78 EPS. American Tower’s revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that American Tower Corporation will post 10.80 EPS for the current year.

American Tower Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th were issued a dividend of $1.79 per share. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 30th. American Tower’s payout ratio is 100.99%.

American Tower declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, October 27th that allows the company to repurchase $2 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the real estate investment trust to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Share repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at American Tower

In other American Tower news, Director Rajesh Kalathur bought 2,829 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 21st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $177.00 per share, for a total transaction of $500,733.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 7,765 shares in the company, valued at $1,374,405. The trade was a 57.31% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ruth T. Dowling sold 952 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.81, for a total value of $176,891.12. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 26,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,855,772.73. This represents a 3.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

American Tower Profile

American Tower Corporation is a real estate investment trust that owns, operates and develops communications infrastructure. Its portfolio includes wireless and broadcast communications sites, such as towers and rooftop installations, where mobile network operators and other customers place antennas and related equipment.

The company also provides services related to site acquisition, development, construction and maintenance. Through its CoreSite business, American Tower operates data centers and provides colocation and interconnection services.

Founded in 1995 and headquartered in Boston, American Tower serves customers in the United States and in markets across Africa, Asia-Pacific, Europe and Latin America.