SBA Communications (NASDAQ:SBAC) Raised to Buy at StockNews.com

SBA Communications (NASDAQ:SBAC) was upgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday.

SBAC has been the subject of several other reports. Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of SBA Communications from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Barclays lowered their price target on SBA Communications from $257.00 to $254.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of SBA Communications from $251.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on SBA Communications from $230.00 to $210.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $230.00 price target (down previously from $260.00) on shares of SBA Communications in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $252.46.

SBA Communications Stock Performance

Shares of SBAC stock opened at $196.83 on Thursday. SBA Communications has a fifty-two week low of $183.64 and a fifty-two week high of $252.64. The company has a market cap of $21.16 billion, a PE ratio of 31.05, a P/E/G ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.69. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $209.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $221.45.

SBA Communications (NASDAQ:SBAC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 28th. The technology company reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.17 by ($0.77). The firm had revenue of $667.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $669.29 million. SBA Communications had a net margin of 25.76% and a negative return on equity of 13.13%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.34 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that SBA Communications will post 12.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at SBA Communications

In related news, EVP Mark R. Ciarfella sold 3,545 shares of SBA Communications stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.33, for a total value of $795,249.85. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 33,588 shares in the company, valued at $7,534,796.04. This trade represents a 9.55 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Donald Day sold 2,321 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.43, for a total value of $472,161.03. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 4,998 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,016,743.14. This trade represents a 31.71 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On SBA Communications

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Oak Thistle LLC raised its stake in SBA Communications by 76.1% in the 4th quarter. Oak Thistle LLC now owns 6,623 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,350,000 after purchasing an additional 2,863 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank grew its position in shares of SBA Communications by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 23,314 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $4,751,000 after buying an additional 1,421 shares in the last quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec raised its holdings in shares of SBA Communications by 14,529.1% in the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 251,328 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $60,495,000 after purchasing an additional 249,610 shares in the last quarter. First Hawaiian Bank lifted its holdings in SBA Communications by 91.0% during the 4th quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 12,377 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,522,000 after buying an additional 5,897 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in SBA Communications by 135.5% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 420,514 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $100,351,000 after purchasing an additional 241,916 shares in the last quarter. 97.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

SBA Communications Company Profile

SBA Communications Corporation is a leading independent owner and operator of wireless communications infrastructure including towers, buildings, rooftops, distributed antenna systems (DAS) and small cells. With a portfolio of more than 39,000 communications sites throughout the Americas, Africa and in Asia, SBA is listed on NASDAQ under the symbol SBAC.