Crown Castle (NYSE:CCI) Reaches New 12-Month Low - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Crown Castle shares hit a new 52-week low, trading as low as $69.60, well below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages of $75.32 and $82.08, respectively.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but leans toward caution: the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a $94.37 price target, while several firms recently lowered their targets.
• The company reported quarterly earnings and revenue above estimates and declared a $1.0625 quarterly dividend, representing a 6.3% annualized yield, though its payout ratio is elevated at 215.74%.

Crown Castle Inc. (NYSE:CCI - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $69.60 and last traded at $68.8990, with a volume of 156318 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $70.23.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Crown Castle in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on Crown Castle from $92.00 to $90.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Truist Financial cut their target price on Crown Castle from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on Crown Castle from $94.00 to $92.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and issued a $80.00 price target (down from $85.00) on shares of Crown Castle in a research report on Monday, September 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $94.37.

Crown Castle Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $28.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.49, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.95. The company's 50-day moving average is $75.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $82.08.

Crown Castle (NYSE:CCI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The real estate investment trust reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.18. Crown Castle had a net margin of 20.71% and a negative return on equity of 51.60%. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $995.05 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.67 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Crown Castle has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.530-4.650 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Crown Castle Inc. will post 4.38 EPS for the current year.

Crown Castle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a $1.0625 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $4.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.3%. Crown Castle's payout ratio is currently 215.74%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Robert Collins sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.89, for a total transaction of $113,835.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 5,113 shares of the company's stock, valued at $388,025.57. This trade represents a 22.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Crown Castle

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of CCI. Pingora Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Crown Castle during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Crown Castle by 55.6% during the first quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC now owns 375 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the period. Global Assets Advisory LLC bought a new position in Crown Castle during the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Crown Castle in the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Crown Castle by 242.8% in the second quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 473 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. 90.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Crown Castle

Crown Castle Inc NYSE: CCI is a communications infrastructure company that owns, operates and leases shared wireless infrastructure in the United States. Its assets support wireless carriers, broadcasters, government agencies and other communications providers by enabling the transmission of voice, data and video services.

The company's primary infrastructure includes cell towers and other tower sites that host antennas and related equipment. Crown Castle has also developed and operated fiber networks and small-cell systems, which help wireless providers expand network capacity and coverage in densely populated areas and along high-traffic corridors.

Founded in 1994 and headquartered in Houston, Texas, Crown Castle has historically served customers across major U.S.

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