Raymond James Financial Inc. Raises Holdings in Lamar Advertising Company $LAMR

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial Inc. increased its stake in Lamar Advertising Company by 11.0%, owning 438,054 shares worth approximately $49.8 million.
• Lamar Advertising reported an EPS of $2.22 for the last quarter, exceeding expectations of $1.48, and set FY 2025 guidance at 6.090-6.11 EPS.
• Analysts have varied ratings on the stock, with Citigroup upgrading it to a "buy", while others like Wells Fargo and JPMorgan lowered their price targets.

Raymond James Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Lamar Advertising Company (NASDAQ:LAMR - Free Report) by 11.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 438,054 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 43,583 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.43% of Lamar Advertising worth $49,841,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Hamlin Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Lamar Advertising by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Hamlin Capital Management LLC now owns 1,311,526 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $149,225,000 after buying an additional 43,081 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in Lamar Advertising by 50.5% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,278,397 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $155,632,000 after buying an additional 428,744 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Lamar Advertising by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,109,668 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $126,258,000 after buying an additional 7,426 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Lamar Advertising by 5.8% during the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 917,833 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $104,431,000 after buying an additional 50,004 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Lamar Advertising by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 674,089 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $76,698,000 after buying an additional 27,823 shares during the last quarter. 93.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on LAMR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Lamar Advertising from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 11th. Citigroup raised Lamar Advertising from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $114.00 to $135.00 in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Lamar Advertising from $122.00 to $119.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Lamar Advertising from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $134.20.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Jay Lecoryelle Johnson sold 22,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.28, for a total transaction of $2,734,160.00. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 14.99% of the company's stock.

Lamar Advertising Stock Performance

Lamar Advertising stock traded up $2.26 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $127.55. 857,676 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 801,533. Lamar Advertising Company has a twelve month low of $99.84 and a twelve month high of $139.88. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $123.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $119.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.45, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market cap of $12.91 billion, a PE ratio of 29.66 and a beta of 1.36.

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 8th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.74. Lamar Advertising had a return on equity of 41.85% and a net margin of 19.72%.The company had revenue of $579.31 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $580.72 million. Lamar Advertising has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.090-6.11 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Lamar Advertising Company will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lamar Advertising Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 19th will be paid a dividend of $1.55 per share. This represents a $6.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.9%. Lamar Advertising's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 144.19%.

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.