Morgan Stanley Initiates Coverage on SBA Communications (NASDAQ:SBAC)

Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of SBA Communications (NASDAQ:SBAC) in a research note issued on Tuesday, Marketbeat reports. The firm set an “equal weight” rating and a $240.00 price target on the technology company’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 9.42% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $230.00 price target (down previously from $260.00) on shares of SBA Communications in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $255.00 target price on shares of SBA Communications in a research report on Monday, February 24th. JMP Securities assumed coverage on SBA Communications in a research report on Monday, January 27th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $250.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com raised SBA Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Citizens Jmp upgraded SBA Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $251.92.

SBA Communications Price Performance

NASDAQ:SBAC opened at $219.34 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $23.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.60, a PEG ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.74. SBA Communications has a 1 year low of $183.64 and a 1 year high of $252.64. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $212.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $218.90.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other SBA Communications news, VP Joshua Koenig sold 2,209 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.18, for a total value of $495,213.62. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 6,079 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,362,790.22. This represents a 26.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SBA Communications

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Oak Thistle LLC increased its position in SBA Communications by 76.1% during 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 period. Czech National Bank boosted its stake 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 valued at $4,751,000 after purchasing an additional 1,421 shares in the last quarter. First Hawaiian Bank increased its holdings in SBA Communications by 91.0% during the fourth quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 12,377 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,522,000 after buying an additional 5,897 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in SBA Communications by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,308,511 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $266,675,000 after buying an additional 38,725 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in SBA Communications by 49.3% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 687,496 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $141,205,000 after buying an additional 226,878 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.35% of the company’s stock.

About SBA Communications

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.