Baird Financial Group Inc. Raises Stake in Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR)

Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) by 21.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,184 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 382 shares during the quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Lamar Advertising were worth $266,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAMR. Carmel Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Lamar Advertising by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,060 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $494,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its stake in shares of Lamar Advertising by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,121 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $867,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lamar Advertising by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 19,259 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,442,000 after purchasing 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 worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in Lamar Advertising by 14.7% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 701 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $85,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. 93.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lamar Advertising Stock Up 2.6%

Shares of NASDAQ LAMR opened at $119.87 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.27 billion, a PE ratio of 33.96 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.48. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $112.52 and a 200-day moving average of $121.73. Lamar Advertising has a 52-week low of $99.84 and a 52-week high of $139.88.

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.06. Lamar Advertising had a return on equity of 30.20% and a net margin of 16.40%. The company had revenue of $505.43 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $509.72 million. On average, analysts anticipate that Lamar Advertising will post 7.92 EPS for the current year.

Lamar Advertising Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a $1.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $6.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.17%. Lamar Advertising’s payout ratio is 150.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Lamar Advertising from $121.76 to $128.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Lamar Advertising from $129.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Lamar Advertising from $135.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $132.60.

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.