Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS Grows Holdings in American Tower Corporation $AMT

Key Points

• Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS increased its stake in American Tower by 5.8% in the fourth quarter, buying 53,150 more shares and bringing its total to 972,099 shares valued at about $170.7 million.
• American Tower remains heavily held by institutions, with about 92.69% of shares owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. Several large firms, including Vanguard, Geode, and Norges Bank, also added to or initiated positions.
• The company posted strong quarterly results, beating EPS and revenue estimates, and it recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.79 per share, or $7.16 annualized, for a 3.8% yield.

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS increased its position in shares of American Tower Corporation (NYSE:AMT - Free Report) by 5.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 972,099 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 53,150 shares during the quarter. American Tower makes up about 0.9% of Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS's holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS owned approximately 0.21% of American Tower worth $170,671,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in American Tower by 1.0% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 63,640,168 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $12,239,277,000 after purchasing an additional 611,801 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in American Tower by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,499,035 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $2,361,675,000 after purchasing an additional 227,361 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in American Tower by 20,721.6% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 9,712,672 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,705,254,000 after purchasing an additional 9,666,025 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in American Tower by 3.1% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,888,633 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,324,822,000 after purchasing an additional 208,109 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in American Tower during the fourth quarter worth about $1,171,180,000. 92.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMT has been the topic of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of American Tower from $225.00 to $220.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of American Tower from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $207.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of American Tower from $254.00 to $248.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of American Tower from $205.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Mizuho upgraded shares of American Tower from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $189.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, American Tower presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $216.20.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Eugene M. Noel sold 41,209 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.05, for a total transaction of $7,872,979.45. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 29,592 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,653,551.60. This represents a 58.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Rajesh Kalathur bought 2,671 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $185.30 per share, for a total transaction of $494,936.30. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 4,936 shares in the company, valued at $914,640.80. This trade represents a 117.92% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 42,181 shares of company stock valued at $8,046,071. Company insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

American Tower Stock Performance

Shares of AMT stock opened at $186.87 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $87.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.19, a PEG ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07. The firm's 50 day moving average is $177.67 and its 200 day moving average is $179.37. American Tower Corporation has a 12 month low of $165.08 and a 12 month high of $234.33.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.60 by $1.24. The company had revenue of $2.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.66 billion. American Tower had a net margin of 26.81% and a return on equity of 27.79%. American Tower's revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.75 EPS. American Tower has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.900-11.07 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Tower Corporation will post 10.67 earnings per share for the current year.

American Tower Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 13th. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th will be issued a dividend of $1.79 per share. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 12th. American Tower's dividend payout ratio is 115.67%.

About American Tower

American Tower NYSE: AMT is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns, operates and develops wireless and broadcast communications infrastructure. The company's core business is leasing space on communications sites — including towers, rooftops and other structures — to wireless carriers, broadcasters, government agencies and enterprise customers. Its business model centers on long-term site leases and contracts that provide recurring revenue tied to the footprint and density of wireless networks.

Beyond traditional tower assets, American Tower offers a range of infrastructure and network services to support mobile, broadband and broadcast connectivity.

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