Lamar Advertising Company (NASDAQ:LAMR) Shares Sold by Townsquare Capital LLC

Key Points

• Townsquare Capital LLC sold 2,245 shares of Lamar Advertising Company, reducing its stake by 5.5%, leaving it with 38,826 shares valued at approximately $4.4 million.
• Lamar Advertising's earnings per share for the last quarter was $2.22, exceeding estimates by $0.74, while the company reported $579.31 million in revenue.
• The company announced a dividend of $1.55 per share, representing a 5.4% yield and a payout ratio of 150.49%.

Townsquare Capital LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Lamar Advertising Company (NASDAQ:LAMR - Free Report) by 5.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 38,826 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 2,245 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC's holdings in Lamar Advertising were worth $4,418,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in shares of Lamar Advertising by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,121 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $867,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lamar Advertising by 33.9% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 371 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. First Manhattan CO. LLC. lifted its holdings in Lamar Advertising by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. First Manhattan CO. LLC. now owns 28,765 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $3,502,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. lifted its holdings in Lamar Advertising by 2.7% during the first quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 4,455 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $507,000 after buying an additional 117 shares during the period. Finally, Prosperity Consulting Group LLC lifted its position in Lamar Advertising by 8.0% during the first quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC now owns 2,014 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $229,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.78% of the company's stock.

Lamar Advertising Price Performance

NASDAQ:LAMR traded down $0.28 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $121.22. The company's stock had a trading volume of 704,005 shares, compared to its average volume of 620,799. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.45, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.58. The business's 50-day moving average is $122.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $119.33. Lamar Advertising Company has a 52-week low of $99.84 and a 52-week high of $139.88. The company has a market capitalization of $12.41 billion, a PE ratio of 28.19 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 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.74. The firm had revenue of $579.31 million during 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%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Lamar Advertising Company will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LAMR has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of 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 objective on shares of Lamar Advertising from $122.00 to $119.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Citigroup raised shares of Lamar Advertising from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $114.00 to $135.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Lamar Advertising from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. 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, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $134.20.

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.