Crown Castle (NYSE:CCI) Shares Gap Down - Here's Why

Key Points

• Crown Castle's shares opened significantly lower, gapping down from a previous close of $96.15 to $93.04, and last traded at $91.66 amid a trading volume of over 1.1 million shares.
• Recent analyst reports show a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with multiple price targets set, including a high of $127.00 from UBS Group and a low of $115.00 from Bank of America.
• Crown Castle declared a quarterly dividend of $1.0625 per share, leading to an annualized yield of 4.6%, with the ex-dividend date set for September 15th.

Crown Castle Inc. (NYSE:CCI - Get Free Report) shares gapped down prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $96.15, but opened at $93.04. Crown Castle shares last traded at $91.66, with a volume of 1,169,321 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Crown Castle from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Crown Castle in a research report on Monday, May 19th. They set a "buy" rating and a $115.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Crown Castle from $112.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. JMP Securities reissued a "market outperform" rating and set a $125.00 price target on shares of Crown Castle in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Crown Castle from $124.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $116.41.

Crown Castle Stock Down 3.9%

The company has a market capitalization of $40.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.64, a P/E/G ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.92. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $103.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $101.43.

Crown Castle (NYSE:CCI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.02. Crown Castle had a negative net margin of 85.54% and a negative return on equity of 619.62%. The company had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.04 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.62 EPS. Crown Castle's revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Crown Castle has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.140-4.250 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Crown Castle Inc. will post 6.67 EPS for the current year.

Crown Castle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a $1.0625 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $4.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. Crown Castle's payout ratio is currently -39.83%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Crown Castle

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CCI. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Crown Castle by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 34,476 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $3,129,000 after acquiring an additional 764 shares during the period. Crestline Management LP acquired a new position in Crown Castle in the fourth quarter valued at about $295,000. Cresset Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Crown Castle by 88.7% during the 4th quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 10,725 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $973,000 after purchasing an additional 5,040 shares during the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Crown Castle by 13,717.8% in the fourth quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 480,030 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $43,568,000 after purchasing an additional 476,556 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in Crown Castle by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 64,672 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $5,869,000 after acquiring an additional 2,396 shares in the last quarter. 90.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Crown Castle Company Profile

Crown Castle owns, operates and leases more than 40,000 cell towers and approximately 90,000 route miles of fiber supporting small cells and fiber solutions across every major U.S. market. This nationwide portfolio of communications infrastructure connects cities and communities to essential data, technology and wireless service - bringing information, ideas and innovations to the people and businesses that need them.

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