Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Acquires 41,373 Shares of Crown Castle Inc. (NYSE:CCI)

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH increased its position in shares of Crown Castle Inc. (NYSE:CCI - Free Report) by 8.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 541,017 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 41,373 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned approximately 0.12% of Crown Castle worth $56,390,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in CCI. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Crown Castle in the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Crown Castle in the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. American National Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Crown Castle in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its holdings in Crown Castle by 62.1% in the 1st quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 347 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in Crown Castle by 95.2% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 408 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. 90.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Crown Castle Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of NYSE CCI traded down $2.31 during trading on Friday, reaching $111.60. The company had a trading volume of 3,419,991 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,744,282. The company's fifty day moving average price is $102.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $98.56. Crown Castle Inc. has a 12 month low of $84.20 and a 12 month high of $120.92. The stock has a market cap of $48.60 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.46, a PEG ratio of 0.86 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 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 in the previous year, the company posted $1.62 EPS. The business's revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Crown Castle Inc. will post 6.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Crown Castle Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th were given a $1.0625 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 13th. This represents a $4.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.81%. Crown Castle's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -39.50%.

Insider Activity at Crown Castle

In related news, CEO Daniel K. Schlanger sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.38, for a total transaction of $2,127,600.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 110,571 shares in the company, valued at $11,762,542.98. This represents a 15.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Edward B. Adams, Jr. sold 8,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.37, for a total transaction of $850,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 20,528 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,183,563.36. The trade was a 28.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 31,600 shares of company stock worth $3,362,752 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on CCI. Bank of America began coverage on Crown Castle in a report on Monday, May 19th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $115.00 price objective for the company. Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Crown Castle from $109.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday. Citigroup boosted their price target on Crown Castle from $108.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Crown Castle from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Crown Castle from $113.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $115.94.

Crown Castle Company 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.