AMT vs. SBAC: American Tower vs. SBA Communications Stock Comparison

Company Profile

American Tower (AMT) and SBA Communications (SBAC) are both classified in the Telecom Tower REITs sub-industry within the broader Specialized REITs industry, placing them in the closest GICS peer bucket.

Both American Tower (AMT) and SBA Communications (SBAC) are REITs — read their payout ratios and P/E alongside FFO (funds from operations) rather than at face value.

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

Trailing Returns

Calendar-Year Returns

Performance Metrics

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

Return Distribution

Risk Metrics

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Profitability

Capital efficiency shows on one side only: American Tower (AMT) earns 32.96% on shareholders’ equity, ranked against its industry; SBA Communications (SBAC) has no ROE this period.

Neither American Tower (AMT) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) nor SBA Communications (SBAC) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) is well served by net margin: heavy depreciation makes net income a poor profitability proxy in their businesses, where FFO-based measures are the standard read.

Neither side reports a meaningful operating margin: for American Tower (AMT) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and SBA Communications (SBAC) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), funding costs are part of the core business, so net margin and ROE are the cleaner profitability reads.

Profitability Metrics

Growth

Both American Tower (AMT) at 5.11% and SBA Communications (SBAC) at 5.06% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

EPS growth isn't a meaningful figure for either American Tower (AMT) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) or SBA Communications (SBAC) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) under our convention.

Growth Metrics

Financial Strength

Both American Tower (AMT) at 0.35 and SBA Communications (SBAC) at 0.19 run current ratio in the tighter-liquidity quartile of industry peers, leaving thinner cushions against current liabilities than typical competitors.

Only one side’s leverage can be read here: American Tower (AMT) carries debt-to-equity ratio of 4.64 against its industry range, while SBA Communications (SBAC) reports no figure this period.

Financial Strength Metrics

Dividends

American Tower (AMT) at 3.64% pays a yield in its industry’s typical range, while SBA Communications (SBAC) at 2.52% falls in the bottom quartile of its peers.

An earnings-based payout ratio fits neither American Tower (AMT) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) nor SBA Communications (SBAC) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs): their distributions are mandated and conventionally measured against FFO, so the accounting-earnings ratio overstates both.

Dividend Metrics

Valuation

P/E ratio is not a meaningful valuation yardstick for either American Tower (AMT) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) or SBA Communications (SBAC) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs): depreciation suppresses reported earnings in their businesses, and price-to-FFO is the conventional yardstick instead.

On P/S ratio, both American Tower (AMT) at 7.95 and SBA Communications (SBAC) at 6.94 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

SBA Communications (SBAC) reports a negative P/B ratio of -4.09, meaning negative book equity — the multiple itself is not meaningful for valuation. Meanwhile American Tower (AMT) reports 24.92, ranking against industry peers normally.

Valuation Metrics