Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Sells 82,140 Shares of American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT)

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. lessened its holdings in American Tower Co. (NYSE:AMT) by 25.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 243,184 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 82,140 shares during the quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. owned approximately 0.05% of American Tower worth $47,270,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Meyer Handelman Co. bought a new position in shares of American Tower during the first quarter valued at $801,000. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its holdings in American Tower by 23.2% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 275,428 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $59,459,000 after buying an additional 51,882 shares during the period. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in American Tower by 13.8% during the 1st quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 38,528 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $7,613,000 after buying an additional 4,660 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of American Tower by 27.7% in the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 20,401 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $4,029,000 after buying an additional 4,430 shares during the period. Finally, Cetera Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of American Tower by 29.0% in the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 41,284 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $8,157,000 after buying an additional 9,275 shares during the period. 92.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at American Tower

In other news, EVP Olivier Puech sold 10,005 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.27, for a total value of $2,333,866.35. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 51,746 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,070,789.42. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Olivier Puech sold 10,005 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.27, for a total transaction of $2,333,866.35. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 51,746 shares in the company, valued at $12,070,789.42. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Robert Joseph Meyer, Jr. sold 2,181 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $232.93, for a total value of $508,020.33. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 31,873 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,424,177.89. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 33,723 shares of company stock valued at $7,795,397. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

American Tower Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of American Tower stock opened at $235.06 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $109.77 billion, a PE ratio of 53.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.83. American Tower Co. has a 52 week low of $154.58 and a 52 week high of $243.56. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $224.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $202.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.42, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81.

American Tower (NYSE:AMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.92 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.52). American Tower had a net margin of 21.95% and a return on equity of 23.06%. The business had revenue of $2.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.82 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.46 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that American Tower Co. will post 10.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Tower Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be given a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 9th. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.76%. American Tower’s payout ratio is 146.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMT has been the topic of several analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on American Tower from $212.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of American Tower from $225.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. StockNews.com raised shares of American Tower from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of American Tower from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on American Tower in a research report on Monday, July 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $230.00 price objective for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $233.29.

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.