Wilbanks Smith & Thomas Asset Management LLC Sells 5,247 Shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Wilbanks Smith & Thomas Asset Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) by 50.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,061 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 5,247 shares during the period. Wilbanks Smith & Thomas Asset Management LLC’s holdings in American Tower were worth $1,093,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Thompson Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in American Tower in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of American Tower during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Emerald Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of American Tower during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. raised its position in American Tower by 200.0% in the 4th quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 177 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. lifted its stake in American Tower by 157.9% in the 4th quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 196 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. 92.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Tower

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 stock was sold at an average price of $190.46, for a total transaction of $962,584.84. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 18,545 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,532,080.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other American Tower news, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 11,510 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 62,969 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,953,352.99. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Pamela D. A. Reeve sold 5,054 shares of American Tower stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.46, for a total value of $962,584.84. Following the transaction, the director now owns 18,545 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,532,080.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

American Tower Price Performance

AMT traded up $3.20 on Friday, reaching $182.84. The stock had a trading volume of 699,130 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,439,018. The company has a market capitalization of $85.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $189.32 and a 200-day moving average of $194.30. American Tower Co. has a fifty-two week low of $154.58 and a fifty-two week high of $219.10.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.43 by ($0.47). The business had revenue of $2.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.79 billion. American Tower had a return on equity of 18.45% and a net margin of 18.42%. American Tower’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.54 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Tower Co. will post 9.94 EPS for the current year.

American Tower Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 26th. Investors of record on Friday, April 12th were issued a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 11th. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.54%. American Tower’s payout ratio is 146.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on American Tower from $183.00 to $196.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of American Tower from $224.00 to $234.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Mizuho began coverage on shares of American Tower in a report on Monday, April 8th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $205.00 target price on the stock. Scotiabank reduced their price target on American Tower from $243.00 to $223.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on American Tower from $228.00 to $220.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $221.91.

American Tower Company 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.