SBA Communications (NASDAQ:SBAC) Shares Gap Up – Time to Buy?

SBA Communications Co. (NASDAQ:SBAC)’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $219.34, but opened at $224.74. SBA Communications shares last traded at $227.54, with a volume of 181,106 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on SBAC shares. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $255.00 target price on shares of SBA Communications in a report on Monday, February 24th. StockNews.com downgraded SBA Communications from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Citizens Jmp raised SBA Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $230.00 price target (down from $260.00) on shares of SBA Communications in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of SBA Communications from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $251.92.

SBA Communications Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $24.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.98, a PEG ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.74. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $212.38 and its 200 day moving average is $218.90.

SBA Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th were issued a dividend of $1.11 per share. This is a boost from SBA Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. This represents a $4.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 13th. SBA Communications’s payout ratio is currently 63.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Joshua Koenig sold 2,209 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.18, for a total transaction of $495,213.62. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 6,079 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,362,790.22. This trade represents a 26.65 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SBA Communications

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SBAC. Oak Thistle LLC grew its position in SBA Communications by 76.1% in the fourth quarter. Oak Thistle LLC now owns 6,623 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,350,000 after acquiring an additional 2,863 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank raised its holdings in SBA Communications by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 23,314 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $4,751,000 after buying an additional 1,421 shares in the last quarter. First Hawaiian Bank lifted its position in shares of SBA Communications by 91.0% in the fourth quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 12,377 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,522,000 after buying an additional 5,897 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of SBA Communications by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,308,511 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $266,675,000 after acquiring an additional 38,725 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of SBA Communications by 49.3% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 687,496 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $141,205,000 after acquiring an additional 226,878 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.35% of the company’s stock.

About SBA Communications

SBA Communications Corporation is a leading independent owner and operator of wireless communications infrastructure including towers, buildings, rooftops, distributed antenna systems (DAS) and small cells. With a portfolio of more than 39,000 communications sites throughout the Americas, Africa and in Asia, SBA is listed on NASDAQ under the symbol SBAC.