National Pension Service Purchases 113,626 Shares of Crown Castle Inc. (NYSE:CCI)

Key Points

• The National Pension Service has increased its stake in Crown Castle Inc. by 10.1% during the first quarter, now owning approximately 0.28% of the company valued at about $128.96 million.
• Analysts have raised their price targets for Crown Castle, with KeyCorp and Citigroup now setting objectives of $125.00 and $124.00, respectively, reflecting a positive outlook on the stock.
• Crown Castle has declared a quarterly dividend of $1.0625 per share, which translates to an annualized yield of 4.2%, with the dividend payment scheduled for September 30th.

National Pension Service increased its position in Crown Castle Inc. (NYSE:CCI - Free Report) by 10.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,237,242 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 113,626 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned 0.28% of Crown Castle worth $128,958,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in CCI. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Crown Castle during the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Crown Castle during the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Stone House Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Crown Castle during the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. American National Bank & Trust purchased a new position in Crown Castle during the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC increased its position in Crown Castle by 62.1% during the 1st quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 347 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the period. 90.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Crown Castle Stock Up 0.6%

CCI traded up $0.56 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $101.61. 2,849,875 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,616,050. The company's 50-day moving average is $103.56 and its 200 day moving average is $100.27. Crown Castle Inc. has a 52 week low of $84.20 and a 52 week high of $120.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.25 billion, a PE ratio of -9.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.89.

Crown Castle (NYSE:CCI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $1.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.02. Crown Castle had a negative net margin of 85.54% and a negative return on equity of 619.62%. The firm had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.62 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Crown Castle Inc. will post 6.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Crown Castle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a $1.0625 dividend. This represents a $4.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Crown Castle's dividend payout ratio is -39.83%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on CCI shares. New Street Research raised shares of Crown Castle from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Crown Castle in a research report on Monday, May 19th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $115.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Crown Castle from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and issued a $125.00 target price on shares of Crown Castle in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $124.00 target price (up from $122.00) on shares of Crown Castle in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $116.24.

Crown Castle Profile

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.