American Tower Corporation $AMT Stock Sold by M&G PLC

M&G PLC decreased its stake in American Tower Corporation (NYSE:AMT) by 24.2% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 805,044 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 256,405 shares during the quarter. M&G PLC’s holdings in American Tower were worth $132,027,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in AMT. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of American Tower during the second quarter worth about $7,490,943,000. State Street Corp raised its holdings in American Tower by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 22,066,202 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $3,647,491,000 after buying an additional 631,593 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in American Tower by 20.4% in the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 7,325,943 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,264,311,000 after buying an additional 1,240,780 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in American Tower during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,096,186,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc boosted its position in American Tower by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,853,850 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $793,944,000 after buying an additional 27,929 shares during the period. 92.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Tower

In related news, EVP Ruth Dowling sold 952 shares of American Tower stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.81, for a total transaction of $176,891.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 26,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,855,772.73. This trade represents a 3.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Rajesh Kalathur bought 2,829 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 21st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $177.00 per share, for a total transaction of $500,733.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 7,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,374,405. This trade represents a 57.31% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

American Tower Stock Performance

Shares of AMT stock opened at $188.98 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $177.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $177.70. American Tower Corporation has a one year low of $160.06 and a one year high of $202.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $88.06 billion, a PE ratio of 26.65, a PEG ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.51.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.64. The firm had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.76 billion. American Tower had a net margin of 30.10% and a return on equity of 32.71%. The company’s revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.78 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that American Tower Corporation will post 10.80 earnings per share for the current year.

American Tower declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, October 27th that allows the company to buy back $2 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the real estate investment trust to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Share repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

American Tower Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on AMT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of American Tower from $240.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of American Tower from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Mizuho set a $208.00 price target on shares of American Tower in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of American Tower from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $205.00 price objective on shares of American Tower in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, American Tower currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $216.11.

About American Tower

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.