Avanza Fonder AB Sells 5,753 Shares of Crown Castle Inc. (NYSE:CCI)

Avanza Fonder AB trimmed its holdings in shares of Crown Castle Inc. (NYSE:CCI - Free Report) by 16.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 28,211 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 5,753 shares during the period. Avanza Fonder AB's holdings in Crown Castle were worth $2,929,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Twin Tree Management LP bought a new position in Crown Castle during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. American National Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Crown Castle in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new position in Crown Castle during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Crown Castle during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in Crown Castle by 95.2% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 408 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares during the period. 90.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Edward B. Adams, Jr. sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.37, for a total value of $850,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 20,528 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,183,563.36. This represents a 28.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Daniel K. Schlanger sold 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.38, for a total transaction of $2,127,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 110,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,762,542.98. The trade was a 15.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 31,600 shares of company stock worth $3,362,752. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on CCI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Crown Castle from $121.00 to $115.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 17th. Argus raised Crown Castle to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Crown Castle from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $85.00 to $105.00 in a report on Monday, March 17th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Crown Castle from $107.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, KeyCorp raised their price target on Crown Castle from $120.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $112.71.

Crown Castle Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of NYSE CCI traded down $1.74 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $98.29. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,299,843 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,908,978. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $100.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $96.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.85 and a beta of 0.88. Crown Castle Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $84.20 and a fifty-two week high of $120.92.

Crown Castle (NYSE:CCI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.72 by ($0.62). Crown Castle had a net margin of 18.59% and a return on equity of 20.98%. The business had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.04 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.72 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Crown Castle Inc. will post 6.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Crown Castle Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a $1.0625 dividend. This represents a $4.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.32%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. Crown Castle's dividend payout ratio is currently -39.50%.

About Crown Castle

Crown Castle owns, operates and leases more than 40,000 cell towers and approximately 90,000 route miles of fiber supporting small cells and fiber solutions across every major U.S. market. This nationwide portfolio of communications infrastructure connects cities and communities to essential data, technology and wireless service - bringing information, ideas and innovations to the people and businesses that need them.