American Tower Stock Outlook: Is Wall Street Bullish or Bearish?

Boston, Massachusetts-based American Tower Corporation (AMT)is a leading independent REIT that owns, operates, and develops multitenant communications real estate with a portfolio of nearly 149,000 communications sites and a highly interconnected footprint of U.S. data center facilities. With a market cap of $80.4 billion, the company leases antennae sites on multi-tenant towers for a diverse range of wireless communications industries, including personal communications services, paging, and cellular.

Shares of this leading REIT have underperformed the broader market over the past year. AMT has declined 17.8% over this time frame, while the broader S&P 500 Index ($SPX) has rallied nearly 22.4%. In 2026, AMT stock is down 1.7%, compared to the SPX’s 13.3% rise on a YTD basis.

Narrowing the focus, AMT’s underperformance is also apparent compared to the Pacer Data & Infrastructure Real Estate ETF (SRVR). The exchange-traded fund has gained marginally over the past year. Moreover, the ETF’s 11% gains on a YTD basis outshine the stock’s low single-digit losses over the same time frame.

AMT's underperformance has been primarily driven by persistent pressure from elevated interest rates, which raised refinancing costs and weighed heavily on dividend-paying real estate trusts across the sector. Its growth has further decelerated as major wireless carriers slowed their capital expenditure following initial 5G network rollouts, alongside ongoing customer churn from carrier consolidation and network restructuring. 

On Jul. 28, AMT shares closed up by 2.9% after reporting its Q2 results. Its FFO of $2.71 per share met Wall Street expectations. The company’s revenue was $2.8 billion, beating Wall Street forecasts of $2.7 billion. AMT expects full-year FFO in the range of $11 to $11.17 per share.

For the current fiscal year, ending in December, analysts expect AMT’s FFO per share to grow marginally to $10.78 on a diluted basis. The company’s FFO surprise history is impressive. It beat the consensus estimate in each of the last four quarters. 

Among the 24 analysts covering AMT stock, the consensus is a “Strong Buy.” That’s based on 18 “Strong Buy” ratings, two “Moderate Buys,” and four “Holds.”

This configuration is more bullish than two months ago, with 17 analysts suggesting a “Strong Buy,” and one advising a “Moderate Buy.”

On Jul. 30, RBC Capital analyst Jonathan Atkin maintained a “Buy” rating on AMT and set a price target of $205, implying a potential upside of 18.8% from current levels. 

The mean price target of $213.96 represents a 24% premium to AMT’s current price levels. The Street-high price target of $260 suggests a notable upside potential of 50.7%.