American Tower Corporation (NYSE:AMT) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

American Tower Corporation (NYSE:AMT) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twelve have issued a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $226.6667.

AMT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on American Tower from $255.00 to $235.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of American Tower from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of American Tower from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, October 12th. Raymond James Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $231.00 price target (down previously from $250.00) on shares of American Tower in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of American Tower in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th.

American Tower Stock Down 0.5%

AMT stock opened at $174.74 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $178.95 and a two-hundred day moving average of $196.36. The company has a market cap of $81.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.91, a PEG ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 0.92. American Tower has a 12-month low of $170.77 and a 12-month high of $234.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.24.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $2.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.65 billion. American Tower had a net margin of 28.11% and a return on equity of 28.79%. American Tower’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.52 earnings per share. American Tower has set its FY 2025 guidance at 10.600-10.720 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that American Tower will post 10.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Tower Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 29th will be given a $1.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 29th. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. American Tower’s payout ratio is currently 108.63%.

Insider Transactions at American Tower

In related news, Director Eugene F. Reilly acquired 5,554 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 31st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $178.99 per share, with a total value of $994,110.46. Following the acquisition, the director owned 5,689 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,018,274.11. The trade was a 4,114.07% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Tower Corp /Ma/ American sold 2,288,621 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.75, for a total value of $159,631,314.75. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 211,379 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,743,685.25. This trade represents a 91.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of American Tower

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of AMT. Focus Financial Network Inc. raised its stake in American Tower by 9.1% in the 2nd quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 2,042 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $451,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the period. Resolution Capital Ltd acquired a new position in shares of American Tower in the first quarter valued at $72,706,000. Stack Financial Management Inc bought a new position in shares of American Tower in the second quarter valued at about $13,020,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Tower by 52.5% during the 2nd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 321,661 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $71,094,000 after buying an additional 110,671 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of American Tower by 47.3% during the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 109,124 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $24,119,000 after buying an additional 35,037 shares during the period. 92.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About American Tower

American Tower (NYSE: AMT) is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns, operates and develops wireless and broadcast communications infrastructure. The company’s core business is leasing space on communications sites — including towers, rooftops and other structures — to wireless carriers, broadcasters, government agencies and enterprise customers. Its business model centers on long-term site leases and contracts that provide recurring revenue tied to the footprint and density of wireless networks.

Beyond traditional tower assets, American Tower offers a range of infrastructure and network services to support mobile, broadband and broadcast connectivity.