American Tower Corporation (AMT)
American Tower is a global landlord for the mobile age, owning and leasing the massive steel masts that carry your phone's signal.
Is American Tower Corporation a good stock for a UK beginner?
The honest version: American Tower is a global landlord for the mobile age, owning and leasing the massive steel masts that carry your phone's signal.
Over about 2 years to 2026-07-31. This is the share price only - reinvesting the dividends would add to it. And it's the USD return - as a UK investor your actual £ return also moves with the exchange rate. Past performance is not a guide to the future, and it could just as easily have fallen.
Based on beta - how much the price swings versus the whole market. Bumpier isn't bad; it just means a rougher ride, which matters more the sooner you might need the money.
Prices move on results, news and the mood of the whole market - no single headline explains a day, and a quiet week is usually just noise, not a signal.
Dominance in emerging markets as mobile connectivity expands
Technological shifts making physical towers less essential
What does American Tower Corporation do?
Think of American Tower as the invisible backbone of your mobile phone service; they own thousands of cell towers and rent space on them to big mobile network operators. They make money through long-term contracts that act like a steady stream of rent, which is why they are often seen as a reliable utility-like business. How much they can keep raising those rents as our demand for data and 5G connectivity continues to grow is the key thing here.
On our factor screen it looks strongest on quality and growth, and weakest on value.
- ✓Pays a dividend - about 4.0% a year
- ✓Growing - revenue up about 5% over the year
- ✓Very profitable - turns about 31% of sales into profit
- !Carries a lot of debt - roughly 4.4x its equity
- ✓Strong return on shareholder money (ROE 34%)
- High profit margins due to the nature of leasing existing infrastructure
- Essential service that remains in demand regardless of the economy
- Long-term contracts provide predictable and stable cash flow
- Value screens low (28/100)
- Momentum screens low (30/100)
- Technological changes like satellite internet potentially bypassing towers
- Regulatory pressure on mobile operators limiting their ability to pay higher rents
- Currency fluctuations affecting income from international markets
What do American Tower Corporation's numbers mean?
How much money does American Tower Corporation make?
Revenue and profit by quarter, and how much of each sale turns into profit.
Does American Tower Corporation pay a dividend?
Yes - American Tower Corporation currently pays a dividend of about 4.0% a year (the yearly payout as a share of the price). A dividend is a slice of profit handed to shareholders; the yield moves as the price moves, and a company can cut or stop it.
When does American Tower Corporation report earnings, and how did recent quarters go?
American Tower Corporation is next scheduled to report on about 2026-10-27 - dates can move, and we don't predict results; this just tells you when to look.
Each quarter a company reports its results against what analysts expected. ‘Beating’ or ‘missing’ is about that expectation, not whether the business is doing well in absolute terms.
| Reported | Expected EPS: The earnings per share analysts expected for the quarter - the average of their forecasts. 'Beating' or 'missing' is measured against this number. | Actual EPS | vs expected |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-07-28 | $1.55 | $1.87 | Beat +21% |
| 2026-04-28 | $1.57 | $1.84 | Beat +17% |
| 2026-02-24 | $1.47 | $1.75 | Beat +19% |
| 2025-10-28 | $1.65 | $1.82 | Beat +10% |
| 2025-07-29 | $1.66 | $0.78 | Missed -53% |
| 2025-04-29 | $1.57 | $1.04 | Missed -34% |
Across the last 6 quarters here, American Tower Corporation came in ahead of what analysts expected 4 times. One quarter is noise, not a trend.
See who else reports over the next two weeks →
Reported vs expected earnings per share (EPS) from published results; the expectation is the analyst consensus, not our view. Report dates are estimates that can move.
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Welltower Inc.What are the scenarios for American Tower Corporation?
An illustrative range for the year ahead, with the assumption behind each case — not a prediction or a price target.
What are the pros and cons of American Tower Corporation?
How many points the write-up makes each way — a balance check, not a score or verdict.
- High profit margins due to the nature of leasing existing infrastructure
- Essential service that remains in demand regardless of the economy
- Long-term contracts provide predictable and stable cash flow
- High levels of debt often required to build or acquire new towers
- Sensitive to interest rate hikes which increase borrowing costs
- Limited number of major customers means losing one can have a big impact
- Technological changes like satellite internet potentially bypassing towers
- Regulatory pressure on mobile operators limiting their ability to pay higher rents
- Currency fluctuations affecting income from international markets
The write-up's own warning lights — if these start happening, the case above changes.
- A significant drop in global mobile data usage
- A major shift in technology that renders physical cell towers obsolete
Built from public filings & market prices, checked for an education-only tone, and never a price target. How we make these →
This plain-English summary was auto-generated on 2026-08-01 from public data and checked for an education-only, no-advice tone (the figures above carry their own, usually fresher, 'as of' date). It's information, never a recommendation.