ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. Makes New $39.98 Million Investment in American Tower Corporation (NYSE:AMT)

Key Points

• ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. acquired a stake in American Tower Corporation, purchasing 183,711 shares valued at nearly $40 million in the first quarter.
• CEO Juan Font recently sold 720 shares of American Tower stock, noting a 2.98% decrease in his ownership.
• American Tower declared a quarterly dividend of $1.70 per share, yielding 3.2%, with a payout ratio currently at 247.27%.

ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. purchased a new position in shares of American Tower Corporation (NYSE:AMT - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 183,711 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $39,978,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Cohen & Steers Inc. boosted its position in shares of American Tower by 21.8% in the fourth quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 19,176,365 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $3,516,890,000 after acquiring an additional 3,437,602 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in American Tower by 66.5% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 8,563,046 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,570,547,000 after purchasing an additional 3,421,413 shares during the period. Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in shares of American Tower by 160.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 4,920,100 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $902,396,000 after purchasing an additional 3,032,005 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of American Tower by 23,627.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,701,957 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $370,346,000 after buying an additional 1,694,784 shares during the period. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of American Tower by 272.0% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,136,903 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $247,390,000 after buying an additional 831,247 shares during the last quarter. 92.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on AMT. HSBC cut American Tower from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $235.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on American Tower from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of American Tower from $240.00 to $230.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of American Tower in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of American Tower from $234.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $243.88.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Tower

In related news, CEO Juan Font sold 720 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.33, for a total value of $149,997.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 23,425 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,880,130.25. This represents a 2.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

American Tower Stock Up 0.5%

AMT stock traded up $1.07 during trading on Thursday, reaching $209.97. The stock had a trading volume of 2,025,687 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,088,164. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.36. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $218.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $210.94. The company has a market capitalization of $98.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 76.35, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.82. American Tower Corporation has a 1-year low of $172.51 and a 1-year high of $243.56.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT - Get Free Report) last released 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. The business had revenue of $2.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.58 billion. American Tower had a return on equity of 24.85% and a net margin of 12.60%. The company's revenue was down 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.79 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that American Tower Corporation will post 10.14 earnings per share for the current year.

American Tower Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th were given a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 13th. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. American Tower's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 247.27%.

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.