American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in June. As of June 30th, there was short interest totalling 6,020,000 shares, a growth of 8.3% from the June 15th total of 5,560,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,410,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.5 days.

American Tower Trading Down 0.7 %

NYSE AMT opened at $211.55 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.23, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.81. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $194.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $193.89. American Tower has a 12 month low of $154.58 and a 12 month high of $219.10.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.43 by ($0.47). American Tower had a net margin of 18.42% and a return on equity of 18.45%. The firm had revenue of $2.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.79 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.54 EPS. American Tower’s quarterly revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Tower will post 10.04 earnings per share for the current year.

American Tower Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 12th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were paid a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.06%. American Tower’s payout ratio is 146.61%.

Insider Transactions at American Tower

In other news, EVP Sanjay Goel sold 3,504 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.36, for a total transaction of $702,061.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 28,413 shares in the company, valued at $5,692,828.68. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Robert D. Hormats sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.50, for a total transaction of $128,450.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,332 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,345,422. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Sanjay Goel sold 3,504 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.36, for a total transaction of $702,061.44. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 28,413 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,692,828.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of American Tower

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in AMT. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in American Tower during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Gold Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of American Tower in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Thompson Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in American Tower during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. acquired a new position in American Tower in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in American Tower in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. 92.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AMT. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of American Tower from $183.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of American Tower from $228.00 to $220.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Raymond James upgraded shares of American Tower from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $226.00 to $248.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Scotiabank reduced their price target on American Tower from $243.00 to $223.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on American Tower from $234.00 to $223.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Tower has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $222.92.

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.