Channing Capital Management LLC Buys 1,392 Shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Channing Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) by 4.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 31,419 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,392 shares during the period. Channing Capital Management LLC’s holdings in American Tower were worth $6,783,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Thompson Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in American Tower in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in American Tower in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Emerald Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Tower in the third quarter valued at $29,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American Tower by 200.0% in the 4th quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 177 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. lifted its stake in American Tower by 157.9% during the fourth quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 196 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. 92.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on AMT. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on American Tower from $183.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Raymond James upgraded American Tower from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $226.00 to $248.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of American Tower from $224.00 to $234.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of American Tower from $236.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of American Tower from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $221.91.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Tower

In related news, Director Pamela D. A. Reeve sold 5,054 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.46, for a total value of $962,584.84. Following the sale, the director now owns 18,545 shares in the company, valued at $3,532,080.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 11,510 shares of the business’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 directly owns 62,969 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,953,352.99. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Pamela D. A. Reeve sold 5,054 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.46, for a total transaction of $962,584.84. Following the transaction, the director now owns 18,545 shares in the company, valued at $3,532,080.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

American Tower Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of AMT traded down $3.28 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $178.46. The stock had a trading volume of 1,701,928 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,458,210. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $189.15 and a 200 day simple moving average of $194.80. American Tower Co. has a 12 month low of $154.58 and a 12 month high of $219.10. The company has a market capitalization of $83.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 the consensus estimate of $2.79 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.54 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that American Tower Co. will post 9.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Tower Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 26th. Investors of record on Friday, April 12th were paid a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 11th. American Tower’s payout ratio is currently 146.61%.

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.