American Tower Corporation $AMT Stock: Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Lowers Stake

Key Points

• Oppenheimer & Co. reduced its American Tower stake by 29.3% in the third quarter, selling 11,236 shares and retaining 27,140 shares valued at approximately $4.44 million. Institutional investors collectively own 92.69% of AMT.
• American Tower reported quarterly earnings of $1.64 per share, matching estimates, while revenue reached $2.79 billion and rose 2.5% year over year. The board also authorized a $2 billion share-repurchase program.
• AMT pays a quarterly dividend of $1.79, equivalent to a 3.9% annualized yield, and analysts maintain a generally bullish outlook with a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $216.28.

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of American Tower Corporation (NYSE:AMT - Free Report) by 29.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 27,140 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 11,236 shares during the quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.'s holdings in American Tower were worth $4,443,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AMT. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in American Tower during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $7,490,943,000. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of American Tower by 2.9% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 22,066,202 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $3,647,491,000 after buying an additional 631,593 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of American Tower by 20.4% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 7,325,943 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,264,311,000 after acquiring an additional 1,240,780 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new stake in shares of American Tower during the second quarter worth $1,096,186,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc raised its holdings in shares of American Tower by 0.6% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,853,850 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $793,944,000 after acquiring an additional 27,929 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.69% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at American Tower

In other 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, with a total value of $500,733.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 7,765 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,374,405. The trade was a 57.31% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

American Tower Trading Up 1.0%

NYSE AMT opened at $185.63 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $86.50 billion, a PE ratio of 16.63, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30. American Tower Corporation has a 12 month low of $160.06 and a 12 month high of $202.50. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $175.61 and a 200-day moving average of $177.27.

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

American Tower declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, October 27th that allows the company to repurchase $2 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the real estate investment trust to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

American Tower Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th were paid a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. American Tower's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 98.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMT has been the topic of several research reports. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of 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 reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $207.00 target price (down from $208.00) on shares of American Tower in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on American Tower from $225.00 to $227.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Barclays boosted their price target on American Tower from $198.00 to $199.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on American Tower from $240.00 to $230.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $216.28.

Key Headlines Impacting American Tower

Here are the key news stories impacting American Tower this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Management raised its full-year outlook again after third-quarter results, while attributable adjusted funds from operations per share increased. The results suggest cash generation remains resilient despite the initial post-earnings pullback. American Tower Stock Price Dips As Q3 Results Lift Guidance
• Positive Sentiment: CoreSite, American Tower’s data-center business, continued to report rising revenue, supporting the company’s growth outlook beyond its traditional wireless-tower operations. Why Is CoreSite Lifting American Tower Guidance Again?
• Positive Sentiment: The board authorized a $2 billion share-repurchase program. Buybacks can support per-share results and signal that management views AMT shares as undervalued. Stock Repurchase Plan Approved by American Tower Board
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst coverage remains constructive overall: Citigroup maintained a “buy” rating and JPMorgan maintained an “overweight” rating, leaving substantial upside in their revised targets. Analysts Offer Insights on Real Estate Companies
• Neutral Sentiment: Articles comparing AMT with finance and real-estate peers indicate the stock’s year-to-date performance is being evaluated favorably relative to parts of its sector, but the analyst outlook across real-estate stocks remains mixed. Is American Tower Stock Outpacing Its Finance Peers This Year?
• Negative Sentiment: Citigroup lowered its AMT price target to $220 from $225, while JPMorgan cut its target to $230 from $240. Although both firms remain bullish, the reductions indicate more cautious valuation assumptions. JPMorgan American Tower Rating

American Tower Profile

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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