James Investment Research Inc. Trims Position in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

James Investment Research Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT - Free Report) by 55.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,269 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 5,336 shares during the period. James Investment Research Inc.'s holdings in American Tower were worth $783,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in American Tower by 1.6% in the third quarter. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,714 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $864,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group raised its holdings in shares of American Tower by 4.2% during the third quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 1,426 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $332,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Tower by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,281 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $235,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Fullcircle Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Tower by 1.2% during the third quarter. Fullcircle Wealth LLC now owns 5,053 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,123,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Resonant Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Tower by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,113 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $206,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.69% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 16,567 shares of the 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 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays cut their target price on shares of American Tower from $215.00 to $214.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. JMP Securities assumed coverage on shares of American Tower in a research report on Monday, January 27th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $225.00 price target for the company. Mizuho dropped 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. StockNews.com lowered shares of American Tower from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped 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. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $225.79.

American Tower Price Performance

American Tower stock traded up $3.95 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $192.51. 2,848,528 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,144,998. The company has a market cap of $89.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 81.23, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.84. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $185.89 and a two-hundred day moving average of $207.99. 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 Co. has a 12-month low of $170.46 and a 12-month high of $243.56.

American Tower Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 27th were paid a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.37%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 27th. American Tower's dividend payout ratio is currently 273.42%.

American Tower Company 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.