Principal Securities Inc. Takes $2.65 Million Position in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Principal Securities Inc. bought a new position in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 12,252 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $2,645,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in American Tower by 2.4% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 143,516 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $23,601,000 after acquiring an additional 3,425 shares during the last quarter. Graypoint LLC raised its position in American Tower by 41.7% in the 3rd quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 1,860 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $306,000 after purchasing an additional 547 shares during the period. TIAA Trust National Association bought a new stake in American Tower in the third quarter worth $3,431,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its position in American Tower by 3.4% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 56,375 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $9,271,000 after buying an additional 1,868 shares during the period. Finally, Princeton Global Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of American Tower by 684.2% during the third quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 1,090 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $179,000 after buying an additional 951 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.69% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other American Tower news, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 11,510 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.71, for a total transaction of $2,367,722.10. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now 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 available through this hyperlink. In other American Tower news, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 11,510 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.71, for a total value of $2,367,722.10. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 62,969 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,953,352.99. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Robert D. Hormats sold 700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.50, for a total transaction of $128,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,332 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,345,422. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 17,264 shares of company stock worth $3,458,757 over the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

American Tower Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE AMT traded down $1.85 on Friday, reaching $184.52. 3,158,084 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,909,077. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $188.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $194.93. American Tower Co. has a 12 month low of $154.58 and a 12 month high of $219.10. The company has a market cap of $86.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.71.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.43 by ($0.47). American Tower had a net margin of 18.42% and a return on equity of 18.45%. The company had revenue of $2.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.79 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.54 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that American Tower Co. will post 9.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Tower Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 12th were issued a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 11th. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.51%. American Tower's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 146.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on AMT. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on American Tower from $228.00 to $220.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of American Tower from $183.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of American Tower from $236.00 to $230.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Scotiabank reduced their price target on American Tower from $243.00 to $223.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of American Tower from $224.00 to $234.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $221.91.

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.

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