Crown Castle Inc. (NYSE:CCI) Shares Purchased by Mediolanum International Funds Ltd

Key Points

• Mediolanum International Funds Ltd increased its holdings in Crown Castle Inc. by 22.0%, acquiring 9,573 shares during the first quarter, bringing its total to 53,163 shares valued at approximately $5.51 million.
• Multiple analysts have adjusted their price targets for Crown Castle, with recommendations ranging from a "buy" rating with a target price increase to $127.00 from UBS Group, to a "neutral" rating with a target of $120.00 from JPMorgan Chase.
• Crown Castle recently reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $1.02, exceeding analysts’ expectations, but experienced a 4.2% decline in revenue compared to the previous year.

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd raised its position in shares of Crown Castle Inc. (NYSE:CCI - Free Report) by 22.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 53,163 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 9,573 shares during the period. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd's holdings in Crown Castle were worth $5,508,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Crown Castle by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 144,766 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $13,139,000 after acquiring an additional 4,772 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Crown Castle by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 129,846 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $11,785,000 after acquiring an additional 724 shares in the last quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Crown Castle by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,555 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $323,000 after acquiring an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. Allstate Corp raised its stake in shares of Crown Castle by 124.2% in the fourth quarter. Allstate Corp now owns 19,425 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,763,000 after acquiring an additional 10,761 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allianz SE acquired a new stake in shares of Crown Castle in the fourth quarter valued at $331,000. 90.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Crown Castle Price Performance

Shares of CCI traded down $1.24 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $105.74. 1,046,569 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,237,430. The business's 50-day moving average price is $102.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $98.93. Crown Castle Inc. has a twelve month low of $84.20 and a twelve month high of $120.92. The company has a market capitalization of $46.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.92, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.88.

Crown Castle (NYSE:CCI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.02. Crown Castle had a negative return on equity of 619.62% and a negative net margin of 85.54%. The firm had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.62 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Crown Castle Inc. will post 6.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Crown Castle Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th were issued a dividend of $1.0625 per share. This represents a $4.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 13th. Crown Castle's dividend payout ratio is currently -39.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Crown Castle

In other Crown Castle news, CEO Daniel K. Schlanger sold 20,000 shares of Crown Castle stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.38, for a total value of $2,127,600.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 110,571 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,762,542.98. The trade was a 15.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Robert Sean Collins sold 3,600 shares of Crown Castle stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.72, for a total value of $384,192.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 6,465 shares in the company, valued at $689,944.80. This represents a 35.77% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 31,600 shares of company stock valued at $3,362,752. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on CCI shares. Citigroup increased their price objective on Crown Castle from $108.00 to $124.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Crown Castle from $107.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. KeyCorp raised their price target on Crown Castle from $122.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Crown Castle from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on Crown Castle in a research note on Monday, May 19th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $115.00 price target on the stock. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $116.18.

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.