OUTFRONT Media Inc. $OUT Shares Sold by Empowered Funds LLC

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC cut its OUTFRONT Media stake by 91.5% in the first quarter, selling 95,316 shares and retaining 8,888 shares valued at approximately $236,000. Other institutions, including Goldman Sachs and Woodline Partners, increased their holdings.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with six Buy ratings and one Hold rating, an average “Moderate Buy” consensus, and an average price target of $34.00. Wells Fargo and JPMorgan both set $38.00 targets.
• OUTFRONT Media reported quarterly EPS of $0.68 versus expectations of $0.38, while revenue rose 13.5% year over year to $522.5 million. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.33 per share, implying a 4.4% annualized yield.

Empowered Funds LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of OUTFRONT Media Inc. (NYSE:OUT - Free Report) by 91.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,888 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 95,316 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in OUTFRONT Media were worth $236,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of OUTFRONT Media by 9.3% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 130,411 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,105,000 after purchasing an additional 11,073 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in OUTFRONT Media by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 85,971 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,388,000 after purchasing an additional 1,739 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in OUTFRONT Media by 9.9% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,980,994 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $80,393,000 after purchasing an additional 448,993 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP raised its holdings in OUTFRONT Media by 45.6% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 36,888 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $595,000 after buying an additional 11,559 shares during the period. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in OUTFRONT Media by 18.1% during the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 98,774 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,594,000 after buying an additional 15,145 shares during the period.

Insider Buying and Selling at OUTFRONT Media

In other news, EVP Richard H. Sauer sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.08, for a total value of $160,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 56,947 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,826,859.76. This represents a 8.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP James Michael Norton purchased 4,130 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $30.81 per share, with a total value of $127,245.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 4,130 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $127,245.30. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 20,000 shares of company stock worth $629,600. 0.45% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

OUT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of OUTFRONT Media from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Morgan Stanley set a $37.00 price target on shares of OUTFRONT Media in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of OUTFRONT Media from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, July 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $38.00 price objective on shares of OUTFRONT Media in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Barrington Research set a $38.00 target price on shares of OUTFRONT Media in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, OUTFRONT Media currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $34.00.

OUTFRONT Media Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:OUT opened at $30.30 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $31.88 and a two-hundred day moving average of $29.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.50. OUTFRONT Media Inc. has a 12-month low of $16.97 and a 12-month high of $34.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.80 and a beta of 1.49.

OUTFRONT Media (NYSE:OUT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.30. OUTFRONT Media had a return on equity of 37.44% and a net margin of 12.66%.The company had revenue of $522.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $509.61 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.51 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 13.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that OUTFRONT Media Inc. will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

OUTFRONT Media Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. This is a positive change from OUTFRONT Media's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. OUTFRONT Media's dividend payout ratio is currently 86.33%.

About OUTFRONT Media

OUTFRONT Media Inc is a leading out-of-home (OOH) advertising company offering a broad range of billboard, transit and digital display solutions across major urban markets in the United States and Canada. Its portfolio encompasses traditional static billboards, high-resolution digital signage, transit media on buses, trains and taxis, as well as street furniture placements such as bus shelters, kiosks and urban panels. The company partners with brand marketers to deliver high-impact campaigns that engage consumers outside the home environment.

Through an extensive network of assets in key metropolitan areas, OUTFRONT provides advertisers with premium visibility along highways, city streets and transit corridors.

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