Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) Reaches New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

Shares of Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) reached a new 52-week low on Friday . The company traded as low as $105.46 and last traded at $106.59, with a volume of 27864 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $109.45.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LAMR has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup upped their price target on Lamar Advertising from $121.76 to $128.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Lamar Advertising from $129.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 21st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Lamar Advertising currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $134.60.

Lamar Advertising Stock Down 2.1 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.48, a current ratio of 0.56 and a quick ratio of 0.56. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $121.32 and a 200 day moving average of $126.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.37 and a beta of 1.53.

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.74. Lamar Advertising had a net margin of 16.40% and a return on equity of 30.20%. The business had revenue of $579.57 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $583.19 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that Lamar Advertising will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lamar Advertising Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $1.55 dividend. This is a positive change from Lamar Advertising’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. This represents a $6.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.78%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Lamar Advertising’s dividend payout ratio is 175.64%.

Institutional Trading of Lamar Advertising

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LAMR. Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Lamar Advertising during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its position in Lamar Advertising by 106.7% in the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 277 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Lamar Advertising by 58.4% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 293 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Lamar Advertising by 46.6% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 450 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC raised its position in 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 valued at $71,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.78% of the company’s stock.

About Lamar Advertising

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.