Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) Hits New 52-Week High - Here's Why

Key Points

• Lamar Advertising hit a new 52-week high, reaching as much as $163.01 in Thursday trading and finishing up about 1.2% on the day.
• The stock’s move came alongside generally positive earnings momentum, as the company recently posted $1.00 EPS versus the $0.82 consensus and revenue of $528 million, both ahead of expectations.
• Wall Street remains cautious overall despite some higher targets: the stock has a Hold consensus rating and an average price target of $150.50, even as analysts’ targets range up to $170.

Lamar Advertising Company (NASDAQ:LAMR - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $163.01 and last traded at $162.5950, with a volume of 51894 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $160.29.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on LAMR. Morgan Stanley set a $145.00 price target on Lamar Advertising in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Lamar Advertising in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Citigroup lowered shares of Lamar Advertising from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $145.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Lamar Advertising from $136.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Lamar Advertising from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $150.50.

Lamar Advertising Trading Up 1.2%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.33, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.58. The company has a market cap of $16.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.94 and a beta of 1.19. The company's fifty day moving average is $153.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $139.06.

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.18. Lamar Advertising had a net margin of 24.01% and a return on equity of 55.53%. The firm had revenue of $528.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $522.86 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that Lamar Advertising Company will post 8.41 EPS for the current year.

Lamar Advertising Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th were paid a dividend of $1.60 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $6.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Lamar Advertising's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 118.08%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lamar Advertising in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,872,000. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in Lamar Advertising by 323.6% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 75,297 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $9,531,000 after acquiring an additional 57,520 shares during the last quarter. Markel Group Inc. grew its stake in Lamar Advertising by 8.8% during the 4th quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 185,000 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $23,417,000 after acquiring an additional 15,000 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in Lamar Advertising by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 232,235 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $29,396,000 after acquiring an additional 10,265 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pensionfund Sabic acquired a new stake in Lamar Advertising in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,025,000. 93.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lamar Advertising Company Profile

Lamar Advertising Company NASDAQ: LAMR is one of North America's largest outdoor advertising firms, specializing in out-of-home media solutions. Since its founding in 1902, the company has grown through a combination of organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to offer a broad portfolio of advertising products. Its core business centers on billboard advertising, encompassing traditional static billboards and a rapidly expanding network of digital displays. These assets enable advertisers to reach consumers with high-impact messaging along highways, in urban centers, and at high-traffic intersections.

In addition to highway billboards, Lamar offers a variety of supplemental out-of-home formats, including transit advertising on buses and shelters, and logo signage at travel plazas and gas stations.

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