Van Cleef Asset Management Inc Buys 347 Shares of Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR)

Van Cleef Asset Management Inc grew its stake in Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) by 0.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 210,680 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 347 shares during the period. Lamar Advertising comprises approximately 3.1% of Van Cleef Asset Management Inc’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest position. Van Cleef Asset Management Inc owned 0.21% of Lamar Advertising worth $22,391,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Lamar Advertising by 43.4% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,693,447 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $141,352,000 after buying an additional 512,182 shares during the period. Ranger Global Real Estate Advisors LLC boosted its position in Lamar Advertising by 129.2% during the 3rd quarter. Ranger Global Real Estate Advisors LLC now owns 477,140 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $39,827,000 after buying an additional 268,934 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Lamar Advertising by 146.2% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 390,876 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $32,626,000 after buying an additional 232,135 shares during the period. Makaira Partners LLC boosted its position in Lamar Advertising by 31.7% during the 3rd quarter. Makaira Partners LLC now owns 756,662 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $63,159,000 after buying an additional 182,111 shares during the period. Finally, Private Management Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Lamar Advertising during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $12,233,000. 93.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LAMR has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Lamar Advertising from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lamar Advertising from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Lamar Advertising from $92.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th.

Lamar Advertising Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ LAMR traded down $1.25 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $112.81. The stock had a trading volume of 331,701 shares, compared to its average volume of 405,066. The firm has a market cap of $11.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.26 and a beta of 1.50. Lamar Advertising has a twelve month low of $77.21 and a twelve month high of $121.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 0.52. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $114.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $104.20.

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). The firm had revenue of $555.91 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $549.84 million. Lamar Advertising had a return on equity of 41.88% and a net margin of 23.49%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.91 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Lamar Advertising will post 7.54 EPS for the current year.

Lamar Advertising Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.61%. This is a positive change from Lamar Advertising’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Lamar Advertising’s payout ratio is currently 107.22%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Jay Lecoryelle Johnson sold 5,000 shares of Lamar Advertising stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.97, for a total value of $594,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,189,700. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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.