American TowerAMTSTRONG BUYJun 12, 2014Stock price when the opinion was issued
As of Aug 06, 2026. Market Open.
Cell phone tower owner/operator - leases out to providers. Very good business as towers don't need to be re-developed. Able to grow earnings at a consistent basis. A little bit more debt than is preferred, but with falling interest rates - will be good for business. Good time to invest in company, and has been buying shares.
As a REIT, some benefit with respect to rate expectations. Just sold tower business in India, which was an overhang, using proceeds to reduce leverage. Capital allocation moving towards developed (away from developing) countries, which adds certainty, higher inflation protection, and more data. Yield is 2.7%.
(Analysts’ price target is $237.64)AMT is a $77.5B REIT which pays a 3.8% yield. Forward sales and earnings estimates are decent, and its historical growth rates are strong. Its margins have been weakening over the past few years and its valuation has come down alongside the rapid rise in interest rates. It generates good free cash flows, which are partly used for distributions and partially for paying down debt. It has a good balance sheet, and it is fundamentally strong, but its valuations are somewhat high and declining based on competition from other high-yielding assets with much less risk such as GICs and high-interest savings accounts. We feel that a catalyst that could help its share price is interest rates stalling or even declining. The central banks indicating that they are done with hiking interest rates can act as a catalyst for AMT and other REITs.
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Looking at this against the REIT complex, it is very steady, but has strong dividend growth. It broke out of an 18 month base of $85. Had actually considered using this as a Top Pick. This business has towers, and the towers have wireless companies as tenants. When you go from 3G to 4G technology, you don’t take down the 3G stuff, you just add more equipment to the tower. Will probably double its cash flow in the next 5 years. Dividend will grow very quickly. This is good for an investor who is looking for a little bit of yield and some dividend growth.