Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Invests $7.09 Million in OUTFRONT Media Inc. (NYSE:OUT)

Key Points

• Westwood Holdings Group Inc. acquired 439,009 shares of OUTFRONT Media, valued at approximately $7,086,000, representing about 0.26% of the company as of their latest SEC filing.
• OUTFRONT Media reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations, despite a 3.6% year-over-year revenue decline to $460.20 million.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share, with a yield of 6.8%, and has a dividend payout ratio of 206.90%.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of OUTFRONT Media Inc. (NYSE:OUT - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 439,009 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $7,086,000. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. owned 0.26% of OUTFRONT Media at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of OUT. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in OUTFRONT Media by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 687,300 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $11,093,000 after acquiring an additional 16,470 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in OUTFRONT Media by 1,484.2% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 60,138 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $971,000 after purchasing an additional 56,342 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in shares of OUTFRONT Media by 429.8% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 32,760 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $529,000 after buying an additional 26,577 shares during the period. Pacific Heights Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of OUTFRONT Media by 122.2% in the first quarter. Pacific Heights Asset Management LLC now owns 500,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $8,070,000 after purchasing an additional 275,000 shares during the period. Finally, Penserra Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in OUTFRONT Media in the 1st quarter valued at $929,000.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of OUTFRONT Media in a research note on Sunday, July 20th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of OUTFRONT Media from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on OUTFRONT Media from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Barrington Research reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $21.00 price objective on shares of OUTFRONT Media in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of OUTFRONT Media from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $19.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Richard H. Sauer sold 20,109 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.88, for a total value of $319,330.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 70,836 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,124,875.68. This represents a 22.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.47% of the stock is owned by insiders.

OUTFRONT Media Stock Performance

NYSE OUT traded up $0.02 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $16.77. The company's stock had a trading volume of 281,899 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,582,427. The stock has a market cap of $2.80 billion, a PE ratio of 28.68, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.89. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $16.98 and a 200 day simple moving average of $16.71. OUTFRONT Media Inc. has a 52 week low of $12.95 and a 52 week high of $19.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.60.

OUTFRONT Media (NYSE:OUT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $460.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $463.16 million. OUTFRONT Media had a return on equity of 18.07% and a net margin of 5.99%. The firm's revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.50 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that OUTFRONT Media Inc. will post 1.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

OUTFRONT Media Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.2%. OUTFRONT Media's payout ratio is presently 206.90%.

OUTFRONT Media Company Profile

OUTFRONT Media, Inc leases advertising space on out-of-home advertising structures and sites. Its inventory consists of billboard displays, which are primarily located on the most heavily traveled highways & roadways, and transit advertising displays operated under exclusive multi-year contracts with municipalities in large cities across the U.S.