Boston Partners Grows Stake in Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR)

Boston Partners raised its position in shares of Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) by 6.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,423,981 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 152,575 shares during the quarter. Boston Partners’ holdings in Lamar Advertising were worth $295,122,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LAMR. Argent Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Lamar Advertising by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Argent Advisors Inc. now owns 12,834 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,562,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Lamar Advertising by 40.0% in the 4th quarter. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. now owns 21,873 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,663,000 after buying an additional 6,252 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Lamar Advertising by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 25,601 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $3,117,000 after buying an additional 2,376 shares during the period. Signature Wealth Management Group raised its position in shares of Lamar Advertising by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Signature Wealth Management Group now owns 31,215 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $3,800,000 after acquiring an additional 523 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harbour Investments Inc. raised its position in shares of Lamar Advertising by 12.1% in the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 878 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $107,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.78% of the company’s stock.

Lamar Advertising Stock Performance

Shares of LAMR stock opened at $113.57 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $11.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.17 and a beta of 1.53. The business’s 50 day moving average is $123.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $127.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.48. Lamar Advertising has a 12-month low of $108.80 and a 12-month high of $139.88.

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.74. The company had revenue of $579.57 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $583.19 million. Lamar Advertising had a return on equity of 30.20% and a net margin of 16.40%. Analysts expect that Lamar Advertising will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lamar Advertising Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $1.55 dividend. This represents a $6.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.46%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Lamar Advertising’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. Lamar Advertising’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 175.64%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on LAMR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Lamar Advertising from $129.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Citigroup upped their target price on Lamar Advertising from $121.76 to $128.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lamar Advertising currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $134.60.

Lamar Advertising Company Profile

Lamar Advertising Company operates as an outdoor advertising company in the United States and Canada. The company owns and operates billboards, logo signs, and transit advertising displays, as well as rents space for advertising on billboards, buses, shelters, benches, logo plates, and in airport terminals.