Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Increases Stake in Lamar Advertising Company $LAMR

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Lamar Advertising Company (NASDAQ:LAMR) by 3.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 63,211 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,998 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Lamar Advertising were worth $7,671,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its stake in shares of Lamar Advertising by 14.6% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 21,739 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,473,000 after purchasing an additional 2,768 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its stake in Lamar Advertising by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 97,106 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $11,785,000 after buying an additional 733 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in Lamar Advertising by 158.6% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 306,887 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $34,918,000 after buying an additional 188,213 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its position in Lamar Advertising by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 19,357 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,349,000 after buying an additional 944 shares during the period. Finally, Meixler Investment Management Ltd. boosted its position in Lamar Advertising by 47.0% in the 2nd quarter. Meixler Investment Management Ltd. now owns 9,650 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,171,000 after buying an additional 3,086 shares during the period. 93.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lamar Advertising news, CFO Jay Lecoryelle Johnson sold 22,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.28, for a total value of $2,734,160.00. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 14.99% of the company’s stock.

Lamar Advertising Price Performance

Shares of LAMR opened at $128.09 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $122.49 and a two-hundred day moving average of $121.64. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.45. Lamar Advertising Company has a twelve month low of $99.84 and a twelve month high of $135.91. The company has a market cap of $12.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.79 and a beta of 1.36.

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.20 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $585.54 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $584.00 million. Lamar Advertising had a return on equity of 41.85% and a net margin of 19.72%. As a group, analysts predict that Lamar Advertising Company will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lamar Advertising Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 19th were paid a $1.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 19th. This represents a $6.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.8%. Lamar Advertising’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 145.54%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings cut Lamar Advertising from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Lamar Advertising from $122.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Lamar Advertising from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Lamar Advertising from $122.00 to $119.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lamar Advertising has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $129.25.

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.