MML Investors Services LLC Increases Stake in Crown Castle Inc. (NYSE:CCI)

MML Investors Services LLC boosted its stake in Crown Castle Inc. (NYSE:CCI - Free Report) by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 163,723 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 6,641 shares during the period. MML Investors Services LLC's holdings in Crown Castle were worth $19,422,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of CCI. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Crown Castle in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton raised its stake in Crown Castle by 107.9% during the third quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 262 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC boosted its holdings in Crown Castle by 159.0% in the second quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 272 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. New Millennium Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Crown Castle in the second quarter worth $34,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Crown Castle during the second quarter valued at $34,000. 90.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Crown Castle Stock Performance

CCI traded down $1.40 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $100.60. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,232,746 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,618,267. Crown Castle Inc. has a one year low of $92.48 and a one year high of $120.92. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $107.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $107.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.43. The firm has a market cap of $43.72 billion, a PE ratio of 35.67 and a beta of 0.86.

Crown Castle (NYSE:CCI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.73 by ($1.03). The company had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.64 billion. Crown Castle had a net margin of 18.59% and a return on equity of 20.98%. Crown Castle's revenue for the quarter was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.77 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Crown Castle Inc. will post 6.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Crown Castle Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.565 per share. This represents a $6.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Crown Castle's dividend payout ratio is currently 221.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Crown Castle from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Crown Castle from $104.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Crown Castle from $115.00 to $124.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. UBS Group upped their price target on Crown Castle from $103.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Crown Castle from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Crown Castle currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $116.53.

About Crown Castle

Crown Castle owns, operates and leases more than 40,000 cell towers and approximately 90,000 route miles of fiber supporting small cells and fiber solutions across every major U.S. market. This nationwide portfolio of communications infrastructure connects cities and communities to essential data, technology and wireless service - bringing information, ideas and innovations to the people and businesses that need them.