MetLife Investment Management LLC Acquires 4,032 Shares of Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR)

MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its position in Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR - Free Report) by 8.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 53,105 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 4,032 shares during the quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.05% of Lamar Advertising worth $6,465,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of LAMR. Carmel Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in Lamar Advertising by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,060 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $494,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its position in Lamar Advertising by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 19,259 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $2,442,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the period. Avior Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Lamar Advertising by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $71,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of Lamar Advertising by 14.7% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 701 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $85,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Finally, Harbour Investments Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lamar Advertising by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 878 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $107,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. 93.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lamar Advertising Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ LAMR traded up $1.23 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $113.35. 86,053 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 492,204. Lamar Advertising has a one year low of $99.84 and a one year high of $139.88. The company has a market cap of $11.61 billion, a PE ratio of 32.10 and a beta of 1.34. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $114.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $123.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.48, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 0.56.

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.74. The company had revenue of $579.57 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $583.19 million. Lamar Advertising had a return on equity of 30.20% and a net margin of 16.40%. On average, equities analysts predict that Lamar Advertising will post 7.92 EPS for the current year.

Lamar Advertising Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $1.55 dividend. This is a boost from Lamar Advertising's previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. This represents a $6.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.47%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Lamar Advertising's payout ratio is currently 175.64%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on LAMR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Lamar Advertising from $129.00 to $126.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Lamar Advertising from $121.76 to $128.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $134.60.

Lamar Advertising Company Profile

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.