Lamar Advertising Company (NASDAQ:LAMR) Shares Acquired by Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.

Key Points

• Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. has increased its stake in Lamar Advertising Company by 0.7% during the first quarter, now owning approximately 1.08% of the company, valued at $126.26 million.
• Several hedge funds have recently adjusted their holdings in Lamar Advertising, with 93.78% of the stock now owned by such institutional investors.
• Lamar Advertising reported a quarterly EPS of $2.22, exceeding analysts' expectations, despite a slight miss on revenue of $579.31 million compared to the anticipated $580.72 million.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lamar Advertising Company (NASDAQ:LAMR - Free Report) by 0.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,109,668 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 7,426 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned 1.08% of Lamar Advertising worth $126,258,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Lamar Advertising by 33.9% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 371 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lamar Advertising in the first quarter valued at $28,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Lamar Advertising by 101.2% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,446 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $277,000 after purchasing an additional 1,230 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lamar Advertising in the first quarter valued at $1,007,000. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in shares of Lamar Advertising by 9.3% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 5,584 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $635,000 after purchasing an additional 475 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.78% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on LAMR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Lamar Advertising from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Lamar Advertising from $122.00 to $119.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Lamar Advertising from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Citigroup raised Lamar Advertising from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $114.00 to $135.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lamar Advertising has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $134.20.

Lamar Advertising Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of LAMR traded down $0.28 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $121.22. 706,928 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 621,575. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $122.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $119.33. The company has a market cap of $12.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.19 and a beta of 1.36. Lamar Advertising Company has a 1-year low of $99.84 and a 1-year high of $139.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.45.

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 8th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.74. The company had revenue of $579.31 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $580.72 million. Lamar Advertising had a return on equity of 41.85% and a net margin of 19.72%. Research analysts expect that Lamar Advertising Company will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current year.

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.