American Tower Corporation (NYSE:AMT) Receives Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• American Tower has a consensus analyst rating of “Moderate Buy”, based on 21 brokerage ratings. The average 12-month price target is about $218.05.
• The company recently reported better-than-expected Q1 earnings, posting EPS of $2.84 versus the $1.60 estimate, while revenue rose 6.8% year over year to $2.74 billion.
• American Tower also raised its quarterly dividend to $1.79 per share, or $7.16 annualized, for a dividend yield of about 4.1%.

American Tower Corporation (NYSE:AMT - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-one ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, fourteen have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $218.0476.

AMT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on American Tower from $209.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. UBS Group lowered their target price on American Tower from $254.00 to $248.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Mizuho upgraded American Tower from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their target price for the company from $189.00 to $205.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Raymond James Financial restated a "strong-buy" rating and set a $240.00 target price on shares of American Tower in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on American Tower from $200.00 to $195.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 16th.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Rajesh Kalathur purchased 2,671 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $185.30 per share, with a total value of $494,936.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 4,936 shares in the company, valued at approximately $914,640.80. This represents a 117.92% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ruth T. Dowling sold 556 shares of American Tower stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.48, for a total value of $99,234.88. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 29,877 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,332,446.96. This trade represents a 1.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 42,181 shares of company stock worth $8,046,071. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in American Tower by 8.9% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 96,793 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $18,615,000 after purchasing an additional 7,872 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank boosted its position in American Tower by 69.6% during the third quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 139,091 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $26,750,000 after purchasing an additional 57,078 shares in the last quarter. Krilogy Financial LLC purchased a new stake in American Tower during the third quarter worth $1,044,000. Machina Capital S.A.S. purchased a new stake in American Tower during the third quarter worth $2,871,000. Finally, Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI raised its holdings in shares of American Tower by 92.4% in the third quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 61,397 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $11,808,000 after acquiring an additional 29,486 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.69% of the company's stock.

American Tower Stock Performance

Shares of American Tower stock opened at $176.45 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $179.45 and a 200 day moving average of $179.74. American Tower has a 12 month low of $165.08 and a 12 month high of $234.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $82.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07, a current ratio of 0.43 and a quick ratio of 0.43.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.60 by $1.24. American Tower had a return on equity of 27.79% and a net margin of 26.81%.The company had revenue of $2.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.66 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.75 EPS. American Tower's revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. American Tower has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.900-11.07 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that American Tower will post 10.67 earnings per share for the current year.

American Tower Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 14th were paid a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 14th. This is a boost from American Tower's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. American Tower's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 115.67%.

About American Tower

American Tower NYSE: AMT is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns, operates and develops wireless and broadcast communications infrastructure. The company's core business is leasing space on communications sites — including towers, rooftops and other structures — to wireless carriers, broadcasters, government agencies and enterprise customers. Its business model centers on long-term site leases and contracts that provide recurring revenue tied to the footprint and density of wireless networks.

Beyond traditional tower assets, American Tower offers a range of infrastructure and network services to support mobile, broadband and broadcast connectivity.

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