Motley Fool Asset Management LLC Purchases 35,113 Shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Motley Fool Asset Management LLC lifted its position in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) by 74.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 82,418 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 35,113 shares during the quarter. American Tower comprises approximately 1.3% of Motley Fool Asset Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC’s holdings in American Tower were worth $17,792,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Thompson Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in American Tower during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of American Tower in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Emerald Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Tower in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. boosted its position in shares of American Tower by 200.0% in the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 177 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the period. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. boosted its position in shares of American Tower by 157.9% in the fourth quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 196 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. 92.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related 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 value of $2,367,722.10. Following the sale, 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 at this hyperlink. In related 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 value of $2,367,722.10. Following the sale, 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 at this hyperlink. Also, Director Pamela D. A. Reeve sold 5,054 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $3,532,080.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

American Tower Trading Down 0.2 %

AMT stock traded down $0.39 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $172.96. The stock had a trading volume of 1,862,233 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,429,965. The firm has a market cap of $80.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.29. American Tower Co. has a 1-year low of $154.58 and a 1-year high of $219.10. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $190.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $193.90.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) 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 firm had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.74 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.34 EPS. American Tower’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that American Tower Co. will post 9.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Tower Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 12th will be issued a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 11th. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.75%. American Tower’s dividend payout ratio is currently 203.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of American Tower from $183.00 to $196.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on American Tower from $235.00 to $228.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. StockNews.com downgraded American Tower from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. Barclays boosted their price target on American Tower from $224.00 to $234.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on American Tower from $236.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, American Tower currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $217.36.

American Tower Company Profile

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.