Edgestream Partners L.P. Buys 6,637 Shares of Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR)

Edgestream Partners L.P. grew its stake in Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) by 27.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 30,760 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,637 shares during the period. Edgestream Partners L.P.’s holdings in Lamar Advertising were worth $3,745,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in LAMR. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Lamar Advertising by 45.5% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,974,848 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $263,840,000 after acquiring an additional 617,356 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Lamar Advertising during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $48,023,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Lamar Advertising during the third quarter valued at approximately $43,665,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Lamar Advertising by 148.9% during the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 434,563 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $58,058,000 after purchasing an additional 259,979 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. boosted its stake in shares of Lamar Advertising by 631.7% during the third quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. now owns 180,296 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $24,088,000 after purchasing an additional 155,656 shares in the last quarter. 93.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Lamar Advertising Trading Up 1.6 %

NASDAQ LAMR opened at $125.28 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $124.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $127.93. The stock has a market cap of $12.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.49 and a beta of 1.53. Lamar Advertising has a 12-month low of $108.80 and a 12-month high of $139.88. 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 (NASDAQ:LAMR) last posted 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. Lamar Advertising had a net margin of 16.40% and a return on equity of 30.20%. The business had revenue of $579.57 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $583.19 million. On average, analysts forecast that Lamar Advertising will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Lamar Advertising Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.55 per share. This represents a $6.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 175.64%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LAMR has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lamar Advertising from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Lamar Advertising from $129.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 21st. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Lamar Advertising from $142.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Lamar Advertising from $121.76 to $128.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Lamar Advertising from $132.00 to $124.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target 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.