Independence Bank of Kentucky Sells 317 Shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Independence Bank of Kentucky trimmed its holdings in shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,724 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 317 shares during the quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky’s holdings in American Tower were worth $1,233,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AMT. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Tower by 269.0% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 107 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in American Tower in the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new position in American Tower during the third quarter valued at $31,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in American Tower during the third quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Activest Wealth Management increased its position in American Tower by 431.0% in the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 154 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. 92.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at American Tower

In related news, CFO Rodney M. Smith sold 16,567 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 62,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,371,631.20. This represents a 20.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

American Tower Stock Performance

NYSE AMT opened at $184.91 on Friday. 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 market capitalization of $86.41 billion, a PE ratio of 78.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.84. American Tower Co. has a 1-year low of $170.46 and a 1-year high of $243.56. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $190.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $210.44.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.45 by ($1.56). The business had revenue of $2.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.77 billion. American Tower had a net margin of 10.05% and a return on equity of 22.01%. The firm’s revenue was down 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.58 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that American Tower Co. will post 10.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Tower Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, December 27th will be given a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 27th. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.50%. American Tower’s dividend payout ratio is presently 273.42%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AMT. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on American Tower from $260.00 to $234.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Scotiabank dropped their price target on shares of American Tower from $236.00 to $220.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of American Tower from $215.00 to $214.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. JMP Securities initiated coverage on American Tower in a research note on Monday, January 27th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $225.00 price target for the company. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price objective on American Tower from $221.00 to $204.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $226.23.

About American Tower

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.