SBA Communications Co. (NASDAQ:SBAC) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

SBA Communications Co. (NASDAQ:SBAC) saw a large growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,860,000 shares, a growth of 45.3% from the December 15th total of 1,280,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 899,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.1 days. Approximately 1.8% of the shares of the company are short sold.

SBA Communications Price Performance

SBAC traded down $0.57 on Friday, reaching $203.61. 697,677 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 859,782. SBA Communications has a twelve month low of $183.64 and a twelve month high of $252.64. The stock has a market cap of $21.89 billion, a PE ratio of 32.12, a P/E/G ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 0.69. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $211.71 and its 200-day moving average price is $221.07.

SBA Communications (NASDAQ:SBAC) last issued its earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The technology company reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.17 by ($0.77). SBA Communications had a negative return on equity of 13.13% and a net margin of 25.76%. The company had revenue of $667.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $669.29 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.34 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that SBA Communications will post 12.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SBA Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were paid a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.93%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 14th. SBA Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.83%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other SBA Communications news, EVP Donald Day sold 2,321 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.43, for a total transaction of $472,161.03. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,998 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,016,743.14. This trade represents a 31.71 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Mark R. Ciarfella sold 3,545 shares of SBA Communications stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.33, for a total value of $795,249.85. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 33,588 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,534,796.04. The trade was a 9.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in SBA Communications during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of SBA Communications during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new position in SBA Communications in the third quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in SBA Communications by 32.5% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 216 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. Finally, Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in SBA Communications during the third quarter worth $58,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.35% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Barclays lowered their price objective on SBA Communications from $257.00 to $254.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. KeyCorp raised their price target on shares of SBA Communications from $230.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of SBA Communications from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of SBA Communications from $251.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $230.00 price objective (down from $260.00) on shares of SBA Communications in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, SBA Communications currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $254.77.

SBA Communications Company Profile

SBA Communications Corporation is a leading independent owner and operator of wireless communications infrastructure including towers, buildings, rooftops, distributed antenna systems (DAS) and small cells. With a portfolio of more than 39,000 communications sites throughout the Americas, Africa and in Asia, SBA is listed on NASDAQ under the symbol SBAC.