Anchor Capital Advisors LLC Raises Stock Position in Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR)

Anchor Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) by 14.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 497,558 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 62,316 shares during the period. Lamar Advertising makes up 1.4% of Anchor Capital Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Anchor Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Lamar Advertising were worth $52,881,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its position in Lamar Advertising by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 21,038 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,236,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its stake in shares of Lamar Advertising by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 9,596 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $801,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. First Hawaiian Bank boosted its stake in Lamar Advertising by 1.5% during the 4th 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. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton lifted its position in shares of Lamar Advertising by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 2,841 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $302,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the period. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lamar Advertising by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,656 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $305,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. 93.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lamar Advertising Trading Up 0.9 %

NASDAQ:LAMR traded up $1.02 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $115.39. 203,468 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 399,967. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.58 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55. Lamar Advertising has a one year low of $77.21 and a one year high of $121.99. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $114.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $104.82.

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) last issued its earnings results on Friday, February 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $1.46 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.49). The firm had revenue of $555.91 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $549.84 million. Lamar Advertising had a net margin of 23.49% and a return on equity of 41.88%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.91 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Lamar Advertising will post 7.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lamar Advertising Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.51%. This is an increase from Lamar Advertising’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Lamar Advertising’s payout ratio is 107.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Lamar Advertising from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 26th. StockNews.com upgraded Lamar Advertising from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Lamar Advertising from $92.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lamar Advertising news, CFO Jay Lecoryelle Johnson sold 5,000 shares of Lamar Advertising stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.97, for a total transaction of $594,850.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,189,700. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 14.98% of the company’s stock.

About Lamar Advertising

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.