Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management Takes Position in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management purchased 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 purchased 998 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $215,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AMT. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in American Tower by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 143,516 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $23,601,000 after purchasing an additional 3,425 shares during the period. Graypoint LLC grew its holdings in American Tower by 41.7% in the 3rd quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 1,860 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $306,000 after acquiring an additional 547 shares during the last quarter. TIAA Trust National Association purchased a new position in shares of American Tower in the third quarter valued at about $3,431,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of American Tower by 3.4% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 56,375 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $9,271,000 after acquiring an additional 1,868 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Princeton Global Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Tower by 684.2% during the third quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 1,090 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $179,000 after purchasing an additional 951 shares during the period. 92.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Mizuho initiated coverage on American Tower in a research report on Monday, April 8th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $205.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com cut American Tower from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on American Tower from $228.00 to $220.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of American Tower from $183.00 to $196.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective 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. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $221.91.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 11,510 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief financial officer now 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 is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director Robert D. Hormats sold 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.50, for a total value of $128,450.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 7,332 shares in the company, valued at $1,345,422. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 11,510 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 62,969 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,953,352.99. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 17,264 shares of company stock valued at $3,458,757 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

American Tower Trading Up 2.8 %

Shares of AMT opened at $186.42 on Friday. American Tower Co. has a 1-year low of $154.58 and a 1-year high of $219.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $188.62 and its 200-day moving average price is $194.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.18, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.71.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.43 by ($0.47). American Tower had a return on equity of 18.45% and a net margin of 18.42%. The business had revenue of $2.83 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.79 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.54 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that American Tower Co. will post 9.96 EPS for the current year.

American Tower Cuts Dividend

The firm 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 yield of 3.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 11th. American Tower’s payout ratio is currently 146.61%.

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.