Lazard Asset Management LLC Boosts Position in Lamar Advertising Company $LAMR

Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lamar Advertising Company (NASDAQ:LAMR) by 220.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 28,109 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 19,324 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Lamar Advertising were worth $3,560,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. M&T Bank Corp raised its stake in Lamar Advertising by 12,278.7% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,147,876 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $145,298,000 after buying an additional 1,138,603 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Lamar Advertising in the fourth quarter valued at about $104,705,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Lamar Advertising by 123.8% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,475,525 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $177,152,000 after purchasing an additional 816,217 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Lamar Advertising by 97.8% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 991,990 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $121,439,000 after buying an additional 490,463 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Lamar Advertising by 23.9% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,629,554 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $199,490,000 after acquiring an additional 314,235 shares during the period. 93.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LAMR has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Lamar Advertising from $136.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Citigroup lowered Lamar Advertising from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $145.00 to $160.00 in a report on Friday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $153.00 target price on shares of Lamar Advertising in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Lamar Advertising from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $145.00 price objective on shares of Lamar Advertising in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $154.67.

Lamar Advertising Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:LAMR opened at $159.96 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $155.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $141.84. The company has a market capitalization of $16.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.51 and a beta of 1.19. Lamar Advertising Company has a 12-month low of $113.66 and a 12-month high of $166.33. The company has a current ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.33.

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.18. Lamar Advertising had a net margin of 24.01% and a return on equity of 55.53%. The firm had revenue of $528.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $522.86 million. Sell-side analysts expect that Lamar Advertising Company will post 8.41 EPS for the current year.

Lamar Advertising Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th were given a dividend of $1.60 per share. This represents a $6.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 16th. Lamar Advertising’s dividend payout ratio is currently 118.08%.

Lamar Advertising Profile

Lamar Advertising Company (NASDAQ: LAMR) is one of North America’s largest outdoor advertising firms, specializing in out-of-home media solutions. Since its founding in 1902, the company has grown through a combination of organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to offer a broad portfolio of advertising products. Its core business centers on billboard advertising, encompassing traditional static billboards and a rapidly expanding network of digital displays. These assets enable advertisers to reach consumers with high-impact messaging along highways, in urban centers, and at high-traffic intersections.

In addition to highway billboards, Lamar offers a variety of supplemental out-of-home formats, including transit advertising on buses and shelters, and logo signage at travel plazas and gas stations.