Short Interest in Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) Rises By 19.5%

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) saw a large growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,680,000 shares, a growth of 19.5% from the February 28th total of 3,080,000 shares. Approximately 4.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 586,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 6.3 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Lamar Advertising Trading Down 4.3 %

Shares of LAMR stock traded down $4.98 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $110.98. The company had a trading volume of 709,352 shares, compared to its average volume of 451,951. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.36 billion, a PE ratio of 31.42 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.48, a current ratio of 0.56 and a quick ratio of 0.56. Lamar Advertising has a fifty-two week low of $108.80 and a fifty-two week high of $139.88. The company’s fifty day moving average is $121.66 and its 200 day moving average is $126.68.

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

Lamar Advertising Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $1.55 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $6.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.59%. This is a positive change from Lamar Advertising’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. Lamar Advertising’s dividend payout ratio is currently 175.64%.

Institutional Trading of Lamar Advertising

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Rialto Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Lamar Advertising during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Lamar Advertising by 106.7% in the 4th 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 period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Lamar Advertising by 58.4% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 293 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in Lamar Advertising by 46.6% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 450 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Lamar Advertising by 16.8% in the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. 93.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.