Oak Asset Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Oak Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT - Free Report) by 10.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,612 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 1,420 shares during the period. American Tower accounts for approximately 1.2% of Oak Asset Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position. Oak Asset Management LLC's holdings in American Tower were worth $3,180,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of AMT. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Tower in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new position in American Tower in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Graney & King LLC purchased a new stake in American Tower in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in American Tower by 218.0% during the 1st quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 159 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of American Tower during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. 92.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

American Tower Trading Down 1.7%

AMT stock traded down $3.66 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $212.57. 2,516,265 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,499,395. American Tower Co. has a 1-year low of $172.51 and a 1-year high of $243.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $99.51 billion, a PE ratio of 89.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.82. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $215.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $202.70.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.34. American Tower had a net margin of 10.05% and a return on equity of 22.01%. The firm had revenue of $2.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.54 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.79 EPS. American Tower's revenue was down 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that American Tower Co. will post 10.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Tower Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.20%. American Tower's dividend payout ratio is currently 174.81%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on AMT shares. JMP Securities lifted their price objective on American Tower from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. UBS Group lifted their price target on American Tower from $245.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of American Tower from $234.00 to $248.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Raymond James raised their price objective on shares of American Tower from $231.00 to $251.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res raised shares of American Tower to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $240.25.

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.