Alethea Capital Management LLC Takes $429,000 Position in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Alethea Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 2,337 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $429,000. American Tower accounts for approximately 0.4% of Alethea Capital Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AMT. Graney & King LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Tower in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new position in American Tower during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of American Tower in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new position in shares of American Tower during the 4th quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Tower during the 4th quarter worth approximately $48,000. 92.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Tower Stock Performance

Shares of American Tower stock opened at $223.49 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.69. American Tower Co. has a 52 week low of $172.51 and a 52 week high of $243.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $104.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 94.30, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.87. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $213.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $202.04.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.34. The firm had revenue of $2.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.54 billion. American Tower had a return on equity of 22.01% and a net margin of 10.05%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.79 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that American Tower Co. will post 10.14 EPS for the current year.

American Tower Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th were given a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 11th. This is an increase from American Tower's previous quarterly dividend of $1.62. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.04%. American Tower's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 141.37%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AMT. UBS Group boosted their price target on American Tower from $245.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. Citizens Jmp upgraded American Tower to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Barclays upped their target price on American Tower from $214.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Citigroup lifted their price target on American Tower from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of American Tower from $234.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $239.27.

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.

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