Fayez Sarofim & Co Raises Stock Position in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Fayez Sarofim & Co boosted its position in shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT - Free Report) by 16.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 36,901 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 5,090 shares during the period. Fayez Sarofim & Co's holdings in American Tower were worth $6,768,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Graney & King LLC purchased a new position in American Tower in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new stake in American Tower in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of American Tower during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new stake in American Tower during the 4th quarter valued at about $46,000. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Tower in the fourth quarter worth about $48,000. Institutional investors own 92.69% of the company's stock.

American Tower Stock Performance

AMT traded down $1.65 during trading on Thursday, hitting $210.95. 2,885,495 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,479,958. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $98.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 89.01, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.87. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $209.98 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $202.42. American Tower Co. has a 1-year low of $170.46 and a 1-year high of $243.56.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT - Get Free Report) last announced its 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. The business had revenue of $2.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.51 billion. American Tower had a net margin of 10.05% and a return on equity of 22.01%. The business's revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.29 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that American Tower Co. will post 10.14 earnings per share for the current year.

American Tower Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 is a boost from American Tower's previous quarterly dividend of $1.62. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. American Tower's payout ratio is currently 141.37%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of American Tower from $221.00 to $204.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on American Tower from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Scotiabank upped their price target on American Tower from $220.00 to $234.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of American Tower from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $210.00 to $230.00 in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Citizens Jmp raised shares of American Tower to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price 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.