American Tower (NYSE:AMT) Receives "Outperform" Rating from BMO Capital Markets

Key Points

• BMO Capital Markets has reduced its price target for American Tower (NYSE:AMT) from $250.00 to $245.00, while maintaining an "outperform" rating on the stock.
• Despite the price target cut, American Tower's current price objective suggests a potential upside of 14.12% from its previous closing price.
• Analysts have generally favorable views on American Tower, with a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target around $243.35.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "outperform" rating reiterated by investment analysts at BMO Capital Markets in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. They presently have a $245.00 price target on the real estate investment trust's stock, down from their prior price target of $250.00. BMO Capital Markets' price target points to a potential upside of 16.05% from the company's previous close.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on AMT. HSBC downgraded American Tower from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $235.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Scotiabank increased their target price on American Tower from $234.00 to $248.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Bank of America began coverage on American Tower in a research report on Monday, May 19th. They set a "buy" rating and a $255.00 target price on the stock. Raymond James Financial raised their price objective on American Tower from $231.00 to $251.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on American Tower from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $243.88.

American Tower Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of American Tower stock traded down $1.86 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $211.12. The company had a trading volume of 725,110 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,621,973. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 76.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.82. American Tower has a 52-week low of $172.51 and a 52-week high of $243.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.36, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95. The company has a 50 day moving average of $218.75 and a 200 day moving average of $210.83.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $2.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.58 billion. American Tower had a return on equity of 24.85% and a net margin of 12.60%. American Tower's quarterly revenue was down 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.79 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that American Tower will post 10.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Tower

In other American Tower news, CEO Juan Font sold 720 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.33, for a total value of $149,997.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 23,425 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,880,130.25. This trade represents a 2.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of American Tower

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AMT. Blossom Wealth Management boosted its stake in American Tower by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Blossom Wealth Management now owns 2,601 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $575,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. TFG Advisers LLC boosted its stake in American Tower by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. TFG Advisers LLC now owns 16,186 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $3,578,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Novem Group boosted its stake in American Tower by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Novem Group now owns 1,316 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $291,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Analyst IMS Investment Management Services Ltd. boosted its stake in American Tower by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Analyst IMS Investment Management Services Ltd. now owns 1,370 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $303,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cypress Wealth Services LLC lifted its stake in American Tower by 1.9% in the second quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC now owns 2,684 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $593,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. 92.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About American Tower

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.