Syntax Research Inc. Acquires 3,937 Shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Syntax Research Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) by 28.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 17,542 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,937 shares during the period. American Tower comprises approximately 2.3% of Syntax Research Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Syntax Research Inc.’s holdings in American Tower were worth $3,217,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Glenview Trust co increased its holdings in American Tower by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Glenview Trust co now owns 7,056 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,294,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group increased its holdings in American Tower by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 1,426 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $332,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in American Tower by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,281 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $235,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in American Tower by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,113 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $206,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Calamos Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in American Tower by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Calamos Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,172 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $398,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. 92.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AMT has been the subject of several recent research reports. Barclays lifted their price objective on American Tower from $214.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company raised American Tower from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $210.00 to $230.00 in a report on Monday, March 17th. Hsbc Global Res raised American Tower to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Mizuho reduced their target price on American Tower from $221.00 to $204.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on American Tower from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $229.43.

Insider Activity at American Tower

In related news, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 16,567 shares of American Tower 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 62,792 shares in the company, valued at $11,371,631.20. This trade represents a 20.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

American Tower Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE AMT opened at $216.41 on Monday. American Tower Co. has a 12 month low of $170.46 and a 12 month high of $243.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $101.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 91.31, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.85. The business has a 50-day moving average of $195.99 and a 200-day moving average of $205.24.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.79 by $0.83. American Tower had a return on equity of 22.01% and a net margin of 10.05%. The company had revenue of $2.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.29 EPS. American Tower’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that American Tower Co. will post 10.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Tower Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be paid a $1.70 dividend. This is a boost from American Tower’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.62. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.14%. American Tower’s dividend payout ratio is 141.37%.

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.