American Tower Corporation $AMT Stock: King Luther Capital Management Corp Increases Position

King Luther Capital Management Corp lifted its position in shares of American Tower Corporation (NYSE:AMT) by 45.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 279,709 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 87,594 shares during the period. King Luther Capital Management Corp owned 0.06% of American Tower worth $45,786,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AMT. Aew Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in American Tower in the third quarter worth $303,000. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board grew its stake in American Tower by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 25,368 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $4,478,000 after purchasing an additional 2,100 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its position in shares of American Tower by 10.5% during the 3rd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 10,980 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,797,000 after purchasing an additional 1,040 shares during the last quarter. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp increased its position in shares of American Tower by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp now owns 64,310 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $10,527,000 after purchasing an additional 1,399 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC increased its position in shares of American Tower by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC now owns 6,776 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,109,000 after purchasing an additional 573 shares during the last quarter. 92.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on AMT. Mizuho set a $208.00 price target on shares of American Tower in a report on Thursday, August 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of American Tower from $240.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $205.00 price objective on shares of American Tower in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Argus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $210.00 price objective on shares of American Tower in a research report on Thursday, November 5th. Finally, Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Tower in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $216.11.

American Tower Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AMT opened at $190.29 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $178.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $177.83. American Tower Corporation has a 1-year low of $160.06 and a 1-year high of $202.50. The firm has a market cap of $88.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.64. The firm had revenue of $2.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.76 billion. American Tower had a return on equity of 32.71% and a net margin of 30.10%. The business’s revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.78 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that American Tower Corporation will post 10.80 earnings per share for the current year.

American Tower Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th were issued a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. American Tower’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 100.99%.

American Tower announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, October 27th that allows the company to buy back $2 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the real estate investment trust to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at American Tower

In other American Tower news, Director Rajesh Kalathur bought 2,829 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $177.00 per share, for a total transaction of $500,733.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 7,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,374,405. This trade represents a 57.31% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ruth T. Dowling sold 952 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.81, for a total transaction of $176,891.12. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 26,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,855,772.73. This represents a 3.51% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

About American Tower

American Tower Corporation is a real estate investment trust that owns, operates and develops communications infrastructure. Its portfolio includes wireless and broadcast communications sites, such as towers and rooftop installations, where mobile network operators and other customers place antennas and related equipment. The company also provides services related to site acquisition, development, construction and maintenance. Through its CoreSite business, American Tower operates data centers and provides colocation and interconnection services.