SBA Communications Co. (NASDAQ:SBAC) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

SBA Communications Co. (NASDAQ:SBAC) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the eleven research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $237.92.

Several research analysts have recently commented on SBAC shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of SBA Communications from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on SBA Communications in a report on Monday, July 1st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $212.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on SBA Communications from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. KeyCorp boosted their price target on SBA Communications from $227.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of SBA Communications from $253.00 to $251.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th.

SBA Communications Price Performance

SBAC stock opened at $226.54 on Friday. SBA Communications has a fifty-two week low of $183.64 and a fifty-two week high of $258.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.42, a PEG ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 0.65. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $209.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $205.93.

SBA Communications (NASDAQ:SBAC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 29th. The technology company reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.07 by ($0.56). SBA Communications had a net margin of 19.22% and a negative return on equity of 9.85%. The business had revenue of $660.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $665.21 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.24 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that SBA Communications will post 12.53 EPS for the current year.

SBA Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be paid a $0.98 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 22nd. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.73%. SBA Communications’s payout ratio is currently 76.86%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director George R. Krouse, Jr. sold 325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.58, for a total transaction of $71,363.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,084 shares in the company, valued at $1,775,084.72. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, Chairman Jeffrey Stoops sold 49,765 shares of SBA Communications stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.01, for a total transaction of $11,048,327.65. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 109,583 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,328,521.83. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director George R. Krouse, Jr. sold 325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.58, for a total transaction of $71,363.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 8,084 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,775,084.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SBA Communications

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Long Pond Capital LP bought a new position in SBA Communications during the 2nd quarter worth $83,687,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of SBA Communications by 3.6% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 85,515 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $16,787,000 after acquiring an additional 2,999 shares during the last quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC bought a new position in shares of SBA Communications during the second quarter worth about $1,702,000. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. lifted its stake in shares of SBA Communications by 34.7% in the second quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 792,147 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $155,498,000 after acquiring an additional 203,938 shares during the period. Finally, DigitalBridge Group Inc. boosted its holdings in SBA Communications by 2.9% in the second quarter. DigitalBridge Group Inc. now owns 600,766 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $117,930,000 after acquiring an additional 16,871 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.35% of the company’s stock.

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.