Community Trust & Investment Co. Has $2.89 Million Stake in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Community Trust & Investment Co. lifted its position in shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) by 4.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,745 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 666 shares during the quarter. Community Trust & Investment Co.’s holdings in American Tower were worth $2,888,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its holdings in American Tower by 269.0% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 107 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the period. Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Tower during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in American Tower during the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Hara Capital LLC bought a new stake in American Tower in the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of American Tower during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Institutional investors own 92.69% of the company’s stock.

American Tower Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of American Tower stock opened at $178.99 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $83.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 75.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 0.84. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $193.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $211.68. American Tower Co. has a 12-month low of $170.46 and a 12-month high of $243.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.45 by ($1.56). American Tower had a net margin of 10.05% and a return on equity of 22.01%. The firm had revenue of $2.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.58 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Tower Co. will post 10.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Tower Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 27th will be given a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 27th. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.62%. American Tower’s dividend payout ratio is currently 273.42%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of American Tower from $255.00 to $245.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of American Tower from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $245.00 to $230.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. StockNews.com lowered shares of American Tower from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Mizuho reduced their target price on American Tower from $221.00 to $204.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on American Tower from $251.00 to $215.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Tower presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $230.67.

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.