Riverbridge Partners LLC Purchases New Shares in American Tower Corporation $AMT

Riverbridge Partners LLC purchased a new stake in American Tower Corporation (NYSE:AMT) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 242,231 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $39,651,000. American Tower makes up 1.2% of Riverbridge Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Riverbridge Partners LLC owned 0.05% of American Tower at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of American Tower during the second quarter valued at $7,490,943,000. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new position in American Tower in the second quarter valued at about $1,096,186,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in American Tower in the second quarter worth about $638,829,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in American Tower in the second quarter worth about $500,016,000. Finally, Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board acquired a new stake in American Tower in the second quarter worth about $291,867,000. Institutional investors own 92.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on AMT shares. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of American Tower from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Argus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $210.00 target price on shares of American Tower in a research note on Thursday, November 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $205.00 price target on shares of American Tower in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of American Tower from $240.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of American Tower from a “hold (c)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $216.11.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Ruth T. Dowling sold 952 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.81, for a total value of $176,891.12. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 26,133 shares in the company, valued at $4,855,772.73. This trade represents a 3.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Rajesh Kalathur acquired 2,829 shares of American Tower stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 21st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $177.00 per share, for a total transaction of $500,733.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 7,765 shares in the company, valued at $1,374,405. The trade was a 57.31% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

American Tower Stock Up 0.7%

NYSE:AMT opened at $190.41 on Wednesday. American Tower Corporation has a 12-month low of $160.06 and a 12-month high of $202.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $88.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.85. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $177.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $177.77.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 27th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.64 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.64. The business had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.76 billion. American Tower had a return on equity of 32.71% and a net margin of 30.10%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.78 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that American Tower Corporation will post 10.80 earnings per share for the current year.

American Tower Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th were given a dividend of $1.79 per share. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 30th. American Tower’s payout ratio is presently 100.99%.

American Tower declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, October 27th that permits the company to buy back $2 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the real estate investment trust to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Share buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

American Tower Profile

American Tower Corporation is a real estate investment trust that owns, operates and develops communications infrastructure. Its portfolio includes wireless and broadcast communications sites, such as towers and rooftop installations, where mobile network operators and other customers place antennas and related equipment. The company also provides services related to site acquisition, development, construction and maintenance. Through its CoreSite business, American Tower operates data centers and provides colocation and interconnection services.