TCW Group Inc. Cuts Stock Position in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

TCW Group Inc. lessened its stake in shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) by 18.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 598,284 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 131,567 shares during the period. American Tower makes up about 1.4% of TCW Group Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest position. TCW Group Inc. owned approximately 0.13% of American Tower worth $129,167,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. SageView Advisory Group LLC lifted its stake in American Tower by 29.2% during the 4th quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC now owns 11,617 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,508,000 after acquiring an additional 2,628 shares during the period. Commerce Bank grew its holdings in shares of American Tower by 13.2% during the fourth quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 22,428 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $4,842,000 after buying an additional 2,609 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of American Tower by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 46,216 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $9,977,000 after buying an additional 3,250 shares in the last quarter. Allstate Corp grew its holdings in shares of American Tower by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Allstate Corp now owns 1,750 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $378,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. Finally, Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Tower by 119.7% in the fourth quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 837 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $182,000 after purchasing an additional 456 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Insider Transactions at American Tower

In other American Tower news, Director Robert D. Hormats sold 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.50, for a total value of $128,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 7,332 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,345,422. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 11,510 shares of American Tower stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.71, for a total transaction of $2,367,722.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 62,969 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,953,352.99. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Robert D. Hormats sold 700 shares of American Tower stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.50, for a total value of $128,450.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,332 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,345,422. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 17,264 shares of company stock worth $3,458,757. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

American Tower Stock Down 2.5 %

American Tower stock traded down $4.74 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $186.60. The company had a trading volume of 1,752,812 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,431,271. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39. The stock has a market cap of $87.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.27, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.71. The business has a fifty day moving average of $185.77 and a 200 day moving average of $196.15. American Tower Co. has a 1 year low of $154.58 and a 1 year high of $219.10.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.43 by ($0.47). The business had revenue of $2.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.79 billion. American Tower had a return on equity of 18.45% and a net margin of 18.42%. The business’s revenue was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.54 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that American Tower Co. will post 9.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Tower Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 12th were given a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 11th. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.47%. American Tower’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.