American Tower (NYSE:AMT) Stock Price Up 3.8% After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) shot up 3.8% during trading on Tuesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock traded as high as $219.27 and last traded at $219.28. 207,539 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 92% from the average session volume of 2,480,659 shares. The stock had previously closed at $211.30.

The real estate investment trust reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.34. American Tower had a net margin of 10.05% and a return on equity of 22.01%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.79 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

American Tower Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th were issued a dividend of $1.70 per share. This is a positive change from American Tower’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.62. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.11%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 11th. American Tower’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 141.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded American Tower from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $210.00 to $230.00 in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of American Tower from $214.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of American Tower in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of American Tower from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of American Tower from $221.00 to $204.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $233.07.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Tower

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in American Tower in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,784,000. Destination Wealth Management grew its position in shares of American Tower by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Destination Wealth Management now owns 94,992 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $22,091,000 after buying an additional 2,517 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC raised its stake in American Tower by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 19,990 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $4,649,000 after acquiring an additional 1,032 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in American Tower by 0.9% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,422,273 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $981,455,000 after acquiring an additional 38,436 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Trust Co. N.A. grew its holdings in shares of American Tower by 19.3% during the third quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. now owns 7,800 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,814,000 after purchasing an additional 1,260 shares during the last quarter. 92.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Tower Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $102.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 92.47, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $211.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $201.94.

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.