Royal Bank of Canada Acquires 938,653 Shares of Crown Castle Inc. $CCI

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada increased its Crown Castle stake by 28.6% in the first quarter, purchasing 938,653 shares for a total of 4.22 million shares valued at approximately $343.3 million. Institutional investors collectively own 90.77% of CCI.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with Crown Castle receiving a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $95.13. Recent targets range from $90 to $105.
• Crown Castle shares opened at $79.11, while the company’s quarterly dividend of $1.0625 per share represents a $4.25 annualized payout and a 5.4% yield.

Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in shares of Crown Castle Inc. (NYSE:CCI - Free Report) by 28.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,222,008 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 938,653 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada owned approximately 0.97% of Crown Castle worth $343,291,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wiser Advisor Group LLC bought a new position in Crown Castle in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in Crown Castle by 55.6% in the 1st quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC now owns 375 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Crown Castle in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Global Assets Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Crown Castle during the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC grew its holdings in shares of Crown Castle by 128.7% during the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 382 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 215 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.77% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CCI has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. KeyCorp upped their target price on Crown Castle from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Crown Castle from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Crown Castle from $92.00 to $90.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of Crown Castle from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating on shares of Crown Castle in a report on Friday, July 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $95.13.

Crown Castle Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CCI opened at $79.11 on Thursday. Crown Castle Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.52 and a 52-week high of $112.75. The stock has a market cap of $34.53 billion, a PE ratio of 40.16, a PEG ratio of 0.40 and a beta of 0.95. The business has a fifty day moving average of $83.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $85.53.

Crown Castle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a dividend of $1.0625 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $4.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.4%. Crown Castle's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 215.74%.

Crown Castle Profile

Crown Castle is a U.S.-focused communications infrastructure company organized as a real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns, operates and leases shared wireless infrastructure. Its primary business consists of providing tower-based site leases, small cell networks and fiber solutions that support mobile voice and data transmission for wireless carriers, cable companies and other enterprise customers. The company's assets are positioned to enable network coverage and capacity, including the densification projects associated with 4G LTE and 5G deployments.

Its product and service offerings include ground-based tower sites that host multiple wireless operators, distributed small cell nodes and associated fiber backhaul used to connect sites into carrier networks, and site development and maintenance services.

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