Vanderbilt University Reduces Stake in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Vanderbilt University lowered its holdings in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) by 9.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 40,434 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 4,339 shares during the quarter. American Tower makes up 1.5% of Vanderbilt University’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Vanderbilt University’s holdings in American Tower were worth $7,416,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in American Tower by 269.0% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 107 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the period. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in shares of American Tower in the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Tower during the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in American Tower during the third quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Activest Wealth Management grew its stake in American Tower by 431.0% in the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 154 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMT has been the subject of several analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of American Tower from $260.00 to $234.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of American Tower from $221.00 to $204.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com downgraded American Tower from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Barclays lowered their price objective on American Tower from $215.00 to $214.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on American Tower from $215.00 to $195.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $226.23.

American Tower Trading Up 1.8 %

American Tower stock opened at $187.53 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $189.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $210.06. The company has a market capitalization of $87.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 79.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 0.84. American Tower Co. has a 52 week low of $170.46 and a 52 week high of $243.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27.

American Tower Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 27th were issued a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 27th. American Tower’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 273.42%.

Insider Transactions at American Tower

In other American Tower news, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 16,567 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.10, for a total value of $3,000,283.70. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 62,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,371,631.20. This represents a 20.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.