Van ECK Associates Corp Trims Stock Position in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Van ECK Associates Corp cut its stake in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) by 3.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 105,515 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 3,233 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in American Tower were worth $22,779,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AMT. Brookstone Capital Management lifted its position in American Tower by 4.4% in the third quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 5,628 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $897,000 after acquiring an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA raised its holdings in shares of American Tower by 49.1% in the third quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA now owns 1,396 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $230,000 after buying an additional 460 shares during the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Tower in the third quarter valued at about $401,000. Mission Wealth Management LP raised its holdings in shares of American Tower by 10.0% in the third quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 2,086 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $343,000 after buying an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Maple Brown Abbott Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of American Tower in the third quarter valued at about $54,709,000. 92.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at American Tower

In related news, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 11,510 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.71, for a total transaction of $2,367,722.10. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 62,969 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,953,352.99. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other American Tower news, Director Pamela D. A. Reeve sold 5,054 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.46, for a total transaction of $962,584.84. Following the transaction, the director now owns 18,545 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,532,080.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 11,510 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.71, for a total transaction of $2,367,722.10. Following the transaction, 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. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on AMT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of American Tower from $236.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Raymond James raised shares of American Tower from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $226.00 to $248.00 in a report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of American Tower from $235.00 to $228.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of American Tower in a research note on Monday, April 8th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $205.00 price target on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of American Tower from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, American Tower currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $221.27.

American Tower Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of AMT opened at $171.56 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.29. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $189.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $194.53. American Tower Co. has a twelve month low of $154.58 and a twelve month high of $219.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.95, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.67.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.10 by ($1.16). American Tower had a net margin of 13.31% and a return on equity of 12.80%. The business had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.74 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.34 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that American Tower Co. will post 9.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Tower Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 26th. Investors of record on Friday, April 12th were paid a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.78%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 11th. American Tower’s payout ratio is 203.77%.

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.