Value Partners Investments Inc. Cuts Stock Position in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Value Partners Investments Inc. reduced its holdings in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT - Free Report) by 87.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,041 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 27,032 shares during the quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc.'s holdings in American Tower were worth $876,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of American Tower in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Emerald Advisers LLC bought a new stake in American Tower in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Thompson Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in American Tower in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Pinnacle Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of American Tower during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Tower in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 92.69% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Tower

In related news, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 11,510 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.71, for a total transaction of $2,367,722.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 62,969 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,953,352.99. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other American Tower news, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 11,510 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.71, for a total value of $2,367,722.10. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 62,969 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,953,352.99. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Pamela D. A. Reeve sold 5,054 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.46, for a total transaction of $962,584.84. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 18,545 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,532,080.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. HSBC assumed coverage on shares of American Tower in a report on Thursday, December 14th. They set a "buy" rating and a $245.00 target price for the company. Barclays lifted their price target on American Tower from $224.00 to $234.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of American Tower from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of American Tower from $235.00 to $228.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, Mizuho started coverage on shares of American Tower in a research report on Monday. They set a "neutral" rating and a $205.00 price objective on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $214.91.

American Tower Stock Down 5.6 %

AMT traded down $10.85 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $181.96. 3,874,552 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,355,892. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $194.56 and its 200-day simple moving average is $193.13. American Tower Co. has a one year low of $154.58 and a one year high of $219.10. The company has a market cap of $84.86 billion, a PE ratio of 57.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.29, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.69.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.10 by ($1.16). American Tower had a net margin of 13.31% and a return on equity of 12.80%. The company had revenue of $2.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.74 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.34 earnings per share. American Tower's quarterly revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that American Tower Co. will post 10.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Tower Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 26th. Investors of record on Friday, April 12th will be issued a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 11th. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.56%. American Tower's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 213.84%.

About American Tower

American Tower, one of the largest global REITs, is a leading independent owner, operator and developer of multitenant communications real estate with a portfolio of over 224,000 communications sites and a highly interconnected footprint of U.S. data center facilities.