Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Sells 50,637 Shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP reduced its position in shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT - Free Report) by 0.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 6,446,742 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 50,637 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 1.38% of American Tower worth $1,182,380,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AMT. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in American Tower by 127.4% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 126,558 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $23,212,000 after purchasing an additional 70,895 shares in the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC increased its holdings in American Tower by 67.7% during the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 12,124 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $2,224,000 after purchasing an additional 4,896 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Sarl bought a new stake in American Tower during the 4th quarter worth approximately $465,000. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co raised its stake in shares of American Tower by 33.7% in the fourth quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 887,844 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $162,626,000 after purchasing an additional 224,012 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ally Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of American Tower during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,301,000. 92.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Tower Price Performance

Shares of AMT traded down $8.38 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $212.59. 7,045,911 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,481,240. American Tower Co. has a one year low of $170.46 and a one year high of $243.56. The firm has a market cap of $99.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 89.70, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $209.52 and a 200-day moving average of $202.35.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.79 by $0.83. American Tower had a net margin of 10.05% and a return on equity of 22.01%. The firm had revenue of $2.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.51 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.29 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that American Tower Co. will post 10.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Tower Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be paid a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.20%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. This is a boost from American Tower's previous quarterly dividend of $1.62. American Tower's payout ratio is currently 141.37%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays raised their price objective on American Tower from $214.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of American Tower from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on American Tower from $220.00 to $234.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Mizuho decreased their price target on American Tower from $221.00 to $204.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on American Tower in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $250.00 price objective on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $233.07.

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.