Cantillon Capital Management LLC Increases Stock Position in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Cantillon Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) by 0.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,947,595 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,343 shares during the quarter. American Tower comprises approximately 2.2% of Cantillon Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Cantillon Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.42% of American Tower worth $357,208,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in American Tower in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in American Tower in the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Activest Wealth Management raised its stake in American Tower by 431.0% in the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 154 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new stake in American Tower in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Hobbs Group Advisors LLC raised its stake in American Tower by 51.0% in the third quarter. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC now owns 222 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. 92.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Tower Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of American Tower stock opened at $205.61 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.69. American Tower Co. has a 52-week low of $170.46 and a 52-week high of $243.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $96.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 86.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.84. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $187.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $206.69.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.79 by $0.83. American Tower had a return on equity of 22.01% and a net margin of 10.05%. The company had revenue of $2.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.29 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that American Tower Co. will post 10.14 EPS for the current year.

American Tower Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, December 27th were paid a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 27th. American Tower’s payout ratio is 134.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of American Tower to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of American Tower from $221.00 to $204.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. JMP Securities began coverage on shares of American Tower in a research report on Monday, January 27th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $225.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of American Tower from $215.00 to $195.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Scotiabank reduced their price target on shares of American Tower from $236.00 to $220.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Tower currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $225.21.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 16,567 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.10, for a total value of $3,000,283.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 62,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,371,631.20. This trade represents a 20.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

American Tower 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.