American Tower Corporation $AMT Holdings Increased by Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC

Key Points

• Chicago Partners Investment Group increased its American Tower stake by 60.4% in the third quarter, to 26,414 shares valued at about $4.99 million. Institutional investors collectively own 92.69% of the stock.
• Analysts give American Tower a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating, with an average price target of $216.11; 18 analysts rate it Buy or Strong Buy and two rate it Hold.
• American Tower matched quarterly EPS estimates at $1.64 and reported revenue of $2.79 billion, up 2.5% year over year. The company also authorized a $2 billion share buyback and pays an annualized dividend of $7.16 per share.

Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC grew its stake in American Tower Corporation (NYSE:AMT - Free Report) by 60.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,414 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 9,944 shares during the quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC's holdings in American Tower were worth $4,991,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AMT. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in American Tower by 270.5% during the third quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 352 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC raised its holdings in American Tower by 3.1% in the third quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 9,529 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,560,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares during the period. 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in American Tower in the third quarter worth $267,000. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of American Tower by 9.7% during the third quarter. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. now owns 83,630 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $13,995,000 after purchasing an additional 7,417 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AIA Group Ltd boosted its position in shares of American Tower by 2.5% during the third quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 54,109 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $8,857,000 after purchasing an additional 1,305 shares in the last quarter. 92.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on AMT shares. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of American Tower in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on American Tower from $210.00 to $201.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on American Tower from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Truist Financial increased their target price on American Tower from $207.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of American Tower from $198.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $216.11.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Rajesh Kalathur acquired 2,829 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 21st. The stock was bought at an average price of $177.00 per share, for a total transaction of $500,733.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 7,765 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,374,405. The trade was a 57.31% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Ruth T. Dowling sold 952 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.81, for a total value of $176,891.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 26,133 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,855,772.73. The trade was a 3.51% 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. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

American Tower Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AMT opened at $194.13 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $176.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $177.59. The firm has a market cap of $90.46 billion, a PE ratio of 27.38, a PEG ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30. American Tower Corporation has a 1-year low of $160.06 and a 1-year high of $202.50.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.64. The firm had revenue of $2.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.76 billion. American Tower had a return on equity of 32.71% and a net margin of 30.10%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.78 EPS. Research analysts predict that American Tower Corporation will post 10.80 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Tower Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th were given a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 30th. American Tower's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 100.99%.

American Tower declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, October 27th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the real estate investment trust to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

About American Tower

American Tower Corporation NYSE: AMT is a real estate investment trust that owns, operates and develops wireless communications infrastructure. Its portfolio primarily includes communications towers, rooftop sites, distributed antenna systems and other infrastructure used by wireless carriers, broadcasters, governments and businesses to support voice, data and video communications.

The company leases space on its sites to multiple customers, allowing them to install antennas and related equipment without building and maintaining individual tower locations.

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