Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. Trims Holdings in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. reduced its position in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) by 29.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 232 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 96 shares during the quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc.’s holdings in American Tower were worth $51,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in American Tower in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Emerald Advisers LLC acquired a new position in American Tower in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Thompson Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in American Tower in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Pinnacle Holdings LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Tower during the 1st quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Tower during the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. 92.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays upped their price target on shares of American Tower from $224.00 to $234.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. StockNews.com cut shares of American Tower from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. HSBC initiated coverage on shares of American Tower in a research note on Thursday, December 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $245.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of American Tower from $235.00 to $228.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, Mizuho began coverage on shares of American Tower in a research report on Monday. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $205.00 price objective on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Tower currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $214.91.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Tower

In other American Tower news, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 11,510 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.71, for a total value of $2,367,722.10. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 62,969 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,953,352.99. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Pamela D. A. Reeve sold 5,054 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.46, for a total transaction of $962,584.84. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 18,545 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,532,080.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 11,510 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 62,969 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,953,352.99. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

American Tower Price Performance

NYSE:AMT opened at $188.32 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $87.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 59.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.29. The company’s 50-day moving average is $194.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $193.02. American Tower Co. has a 12-month low of $154.58 and a 12-month high of $219.10.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by ($1.16). The firm had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.74 billion. American Tower had a net margin of 13.31% and a return on equity of 12.80%. American Tower’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.34 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that American Tower Co. will post 10.08 EPS for the current year.

American Tower Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 12th will be issued a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 11th. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.44%. American Tower’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 213.84%.

American Tower Profile

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.