Inspire Investing LLC Grows Stock Position in Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR)

Inspire Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) by 9.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 17,566 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 1,577 shares during the quarter. Inspire Investing LLC’s holdings in Lamar Advertising were worth $2,098,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in LAMR. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Lamar Advertising by 3.5% in the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,656 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $305,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its position in Lamar Advertising by 249.0% in the third quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 705 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 503 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky raised its position in Lamar Advertising by 93.6% in the third quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 29,837 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,490,000 after purchasing an additional 14,427 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co raised its position in Lamar Advertising by 16.6% in the fourth quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 3,081 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $327,000 after purchasing an additional 438 shares during the period. Finally, First Hawaiian Bank raised its position in Lamar Advertising by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 7,924 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $842,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.78% of the company’s stock.

Lamar Advertising Stock Up 2.0 %

Shares of Lamar Advertising stock traded up $2.30 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $120.00. 257,139 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 402,236. Lamar Advertising has a 1 year low of $77.21 and a 1 year high of $122.22. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $117.94 and its 200 day moving average is $113.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 0.38. The firm has a market cap of $12.27 billion, a PE ratio of 24.49 and a beta of 1.52.

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The real estate investment trust reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by ($0.71). The firm had revenue of $498.15 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $496.98 million. Lamar Advertising had a return on equity of 41.86% and a net margin of 23.29%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.41 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Lamar Advertising will post 7.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Lamar Advertising Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Monday, June 17th were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 17th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.33%. Lamar Advertising’s payout ratio is currently 106.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director John E. Koerner III sold 17,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.05, for a total transaction of $2,040,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 32,178 shares in the company, valued at $3,862,968.90. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 14.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on LAMR. StockNews.com raised Lamar Advertising from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Citigroup lowered Lamar Advertising from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $122.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, TD Cowen began coverage on Lamar Advertising in a research report on Tuesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $135.00 price objective on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $119.00.

Lamar Advertising 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.