4,872 Shares in Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) Purchased by Merit Financial Group LLC

Merit Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 4,872 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $554,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lamar Advertising during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in Lamar Advertising by 106.7% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 277 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Lamar Advertising by 58.4% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 293 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its position in Lamar Advertising by 175.1% in the 4th quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 707 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $86,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the period. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC raised its stake in Lamar Advertising by 100.8% during the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 773 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $94,000 after buying an additional 388 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.78% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on LAMR. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Lamar Advertising from $135.00 to $125.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup raised Lamar Advertising from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $114.00 to $135.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Lamar Advertising from $129.00 to $126.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Lamar Advertising presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $134.00.

Lamar Advertising Stock Performance

NASDAQ LAMR traded up $0.97 on Tuesday, hitting $121.67. 301,755 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 645,216. The business's 50 day moving average price is $114.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $120.35. Lamar Advertising has a 52-week low of $99.84 and a 52-week 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. The company has a market capitalization of $12.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.47 and a beta of 1.34.

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $505.43 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $509.72 million. Lamar Advertising had a return on equity of 30.20% and a net margin of 16.40%. Equities analysts expect that Lamar Advertising will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Lamar Advertising Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $1.55 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $6.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.10%. Lamar Advertising's payout ratio is 150.49%.

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.