Principal Financial Group Inc. Buys 9,242 Shares of Lamar Advertising Company $LAMR

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Lamar Advertising Company (NASDAQ:LAMR) by 5.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 195,441 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,242 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.19% of Lamar Advertising worth $24,755,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAMR. Tucker Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lamar Advertising in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lamar Advertising by 151.0% during the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 251 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in Lamar Advertising in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Beacon Financial Strategies CORP acquired a new stake in Lamar Advertising in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new stake in Lamar Advertising in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Institutional investors own 93.78% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on LAMR. Citigroup downgraded Lamar Advertising from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $145.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley set a $145.00 price objective on shares of Lamar Advertising in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Lamar Advertising in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Lamar Advertising from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Lamar Advertising from $136.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $150.50.

Lamar Advertising Trading Down 0.7%

LAMR stock opened at $161.16 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.33, a current ratio of 0.58 and a quick ratio of 0.58. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $153.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $139.81. Lamar Advertising Company has a one year low of $113.66 and a one year high of $164.38. The stock has a market cap of $16.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.73 and a beta of 1.19.

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

Lamar Advertising Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th were issued a $1.60 dividend. This represents a $6.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 16th. Lamar Advertising’s dividend payout ratio is currently 118.08%.

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.