Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in OUTFRONT Media Inc. $OUT

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group trimmed its stake in OUTFRONT Media by 5.6%, selling 116,939 shares and now holds 1,972,504 shares (about 1.18% of the company) valued at roughly $47.54 million.
• OUTFRONT missed quarterly EPS expectations ($0.55 vs. $0.71) while slightly beating revenue estimates, and analysts have largely raised targets—consensus is a "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $27.86.
• The stock pays a $0.30 quarterly dividend (about a 4.1% yield) but carries a high payout ratio of 150%, and insiders have recently sold ~72,542 shares over the past 90 days, leaving insiders with roughly 0.47% ownership.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. reduced its stake in OUTFRONT Media Inc. (NYSE:OUT - Free Report) by 5.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,972,504 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 116,939 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned 1.18% of OUTFRONT Media worth $47,537,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of OUTFRONT Media by 224.4% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 7,853 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $189,000 after buying an additional 5,432 shares during the period. BTC Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of OUTFRONT Media in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,625,000. Pensionfund Sabic acquired a new stake in shares of OUTFRONT Media in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $526,000. Pensionfund PDN acquired a new stake in shares of OUTFRONT Media in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,027,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of OUTFRONT Media by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 37,532 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $905,000 after buying an additional 961 shares during the period.

OUTFRONT Media Stock Performance

Shares of OUT stock opened at $29.02 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $27.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $23.70. The stock has a market cap of $5.11 billion, a PE ratio of 36.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.51. OUTFRONT Media Inc. has a 1 year low of $13.99 and a 1 year high of $29.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.63, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.92.

OUTFRONT Media (NYSE:OUT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.71 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $513.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $511.61 million. OUTFRONT Media had a return on equity of 24.86% and a net margin of 8.03%. Sell-side analysts forecast that OUTFRONT Media Inc. will post 1.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

OUTFRONT Media Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 6th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. OUTFRONT Media's payout ratio is currently 150.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on OUT shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on OUTFRONT Media from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. TD Cowen raised their price target on OUTFRONT Media from $24.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Barrington Research raised their price target on OUTFRONT Media from $27.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Zacks Research cut OUTFRONT Media from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $27.86.

Insider Buying and Selling at OUTFRONT Media

In related news, EVP Matthew Siegel sold 50,000 shares of OUTFRONT Media stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.79, for a total transaction of $1,289,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 289,925 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,477,165.75. The trade was a 14.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Manuel A. Diaz sold 11,271 shares of OUTFRONT Media stock in a transaction on Monday, March 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.93, for a total value of $303,528.03. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 36,244 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $976,050.92. This represents a 23.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 72,542 shares of company stock valued at $1,869,055. 0.47% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

OUTFRONT Media Company Profile

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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