10,204 Shares in American Tower Corporation $AMT Acquired by Highland Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• Highland Capital Management LLC has acquired 10,204 shares of American Tower Corporation valued at approximately $2.25 million, indicating continued interest from institutional investors in the REIT sector.
• American Tower's quarterly earnings report showed an EPS of $2.60, slightly exceeding analyst expectations, although revenue decreased by 9.4% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.70 per share, with a 3.6% yield, and a dividend payout ratio currently at 247.27%, raising concerns about sustainability.

Highland Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Tower Corporation (NYSE:AMT - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm acquired 10,204 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $2,255,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. North Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in American Tower during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in American Tower by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. now owns 120 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in American Tower during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. City Holding Co. acquired a new stake in American Tower during the 1st quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Saudi Central Bank acquired a new stake in American Tower during the 1st quarter worth approximately $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.69% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Juan Font sold 720 shares of American Tower stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.33, for a total transaction of $149,997.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 23,425 shares in the company, valued at $4,880,130.25. This trade represents a 2.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

American Tower Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AMT opened at $190.10 on Friday. The company's fifty day moving average price is $201.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $211.75. American Tower Corporation has a 12 month low of $172.51 and a 12 month high of $234.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.36, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $89.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 69.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.86.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.01. American Tower had a net margin of 12.60% and a return on equity of 24.85%. The firm had revenue of $2.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.58 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.79 EPS. American Tower's revenue for the quarter was down 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. American Tower has set its FY 2025 guidance at 10.460-10.650 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that American Tower Corporation will post 10.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Tower Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.70 per share. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 30th. American Tower's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 247.27%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on AMT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of American Tower from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Hsbc Global Res lowered shares of American Tower from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of American Tower from $246.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, August 18th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of American Tower in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of American Tower from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Tower presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $242.07.

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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