Morgan Stanley Says Crown Castle International Corp "The Dividend That You Want In Tower Land"

On Thursday after hours, Crown Castle International Corp. CCI reported third quarter financial results beating top and bottom line estimates.

Following earnings, the company announced it has raised its annual dividend rate from $1.40/share to $3.28/share; representing over a 100 percent increase. Moreover, the company expects to grow the dividend at 6 percent to 7 percent CAGR over the next five years.

Amid the announcement, Morgan Stanley offered commentary on Crown Castle Corp in a note titled, ‘The Dividend That You Want In Tower Land.’

Simon Flannery stated, “Crown Castle now offers a ~4% dividend yield, based on today's closing price,compared to the REITs, which yield between 3.3% and 3.9%.We continue to see upside, as the stock attracts income oriented investors.”

Despite the bullish dividend raise, Crown Castle offered full year 2015 guidance that was lower than expected prompting the shares to be down 6 percent Friday; currently trading at $78.28.