Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC Acquires 719 Shares of Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR)

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) by 1.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 56,213 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 719 shares during the quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC owned 0.06% of Lamar Advertising worth $5,974,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in Lamar Advertising by 93.0% in the 3rd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 359 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC bought a new position in Lamar Advertising in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in Lamar Advertising by 43.7% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 493 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its position in Lamar Advertising by 79.5% in the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 429 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arlington Trust Co LLC bought a new position in Lamar Advertising in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $57,000. 93.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on LAMR shares. StockNews.com raised Lamar Advertising from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Lamar Advertising from $92.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Lamar Advertising from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th.

Lamar Advertising Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LAMR traded up $0.23 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $110.95. The company had a trading volume of 71,271 shares, compared to its average volume of 407,854. Lamar Advertising has a 12-month low of $77.21 and a 12-month high of $121.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The company has a market cap of $11.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.89 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a fifty day moving average of $113.41 and a two-hundred day moving average of $103.09.

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $1.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by ($0.49). Lamar Advertising had a return on equity of 41.88% and a net margin of 23.49%. The business had revenue of $555.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $549.84 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.91 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Lamar Advertising will post 7.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lamar Advertising Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.69%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Lamar Advertising’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Lamar Advertising’s dividend payout ratio is presently 107.22%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Jay Lecoryelle Johnson sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.97, for a total transaction of $594,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,189,700. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 14.98% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Lamar Advertising 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.