Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Reduces Stake in SBA Communications Corporation $SBAC

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. reduced its stake in SBA Communications by 4.4% in Q4, selling 10,006 shares to hold 215,187 shares (0.20% of the company) worth $41.624 million; institutional investors now own 97.35% of the stock.
• SBA beat EPS but revenue slightly missed, reporting $3.47 EPS vs. a $3.25 estimate and $719.6M in revenue (up 3.7% year-over-year); the company also raised its quarterly dividend to $1.25 ($5.00 annualized, ~2.3% yield).
• The consensus analyst rating is "Hold" with an average price target of $233.63; SBA's market cap is $22.66 billion and its P/E is 22.48.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. decreased its stake in shares of SBA Communications Corporation (NASDAQ:SBAC - Free Report) by 4.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 215,187 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 10,006 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned 0.20% of SBA Communications worth $41,624,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its holdings in SBA Communications by 6.3% during the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 32,465 shares of the technology company's stock worth $6,280,000 after purchasing an additional 1,931 shares in the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in SBA Communications during the 4th quarter worth about $204,000. Brookwood Investment Group LLC purchased a new stake in SBA Communications during the 4th quarter worth about $221,000. LDR Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in SBA Communications during the 4th quarter worth about $388,000. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in SBA Communications during the 4th quarter worth about $652,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.35% of the company's stock.

SBA Communications Price Performance

SBAC opened at $214.20 on Thursday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $193.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $192.12. SBA Communications Corporation has a 1 year low of $162.41 and a 1 year high of $245.16. The firm has a market cap of $22.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.48, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.88.

SBA Communications (NASDAQ:SBAC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The technology company reported $3.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.25 by $0.22. SBA Communications had a negative return on equity of 20.81% and a net margin of 36.40%.The business had revenue of $719.58 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $725.80 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.47 EPS. SBA Communications's revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that SBA Communications Corporation will post 12.57 EPS for the current year.

SBA Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th were given a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from SBA Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $1.11. SBA Communications's dividend payout ratio is 52.47%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on SBA Communications from $245.00 to $240.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 12th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on SBA Communications from $195.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $244.00 target price on shares of SBA Communications in a research note on Wednesday. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on SBA Communications in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $218.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on SBA Communications from $215.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, SBA Communications has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $233.63.

SBA Communications Profile

SBA Communications Corporation NASDAQ: SBAC is a real estate investment trust that owns, operates and develops wireless communications infrastructure. Its core business is the leasing of space on communications towers, rooftop sites and other wireless structures to mobile network operators, broadband providers and other wireless service customers. The company also provides site development, construction and ongoing site management services to support the deployment and operation of wireless networks.

In addition to traditional macro towers, SBA offers a range of infrastructure solutions designed for dense urban and suburban markets, including small cells, distributed antenna systems (DAS) and fiber backhaul and transport services.

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