Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) Shares Gap Down – Time to Sell?

Shares of Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $132.00, but opened at $124.01. Lamar Advertising shares last traded at $126.28, with a volume of 341,270 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Lamar Advertising from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Lamar Advertising from $142.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Lamar Advertising from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Lamar Advertising from $132.00 to $124.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Lamar Advertising has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $132.40.

Lamar Advertising Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $12.81 billion, a PE ratio of 24.97 and a beta of 1.51. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $124.87 and its 200-day moving average is $127.35. 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 (NASDAQ:LAMR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.74. Lamar Advertising had a net margin of 23.46% and a return on equity of 42.58%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Lamar Advertising will post 7.49 EPS for the current year.

Lamar Advertising Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $1.55 dividend. This represents a $6.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.95%. This is a positive change from Lamar Advertising’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. Lamar Advertising’s dividend payout ratio is 112.00%.

Institutional Trading of Lamar Advertising

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lamar Advertising during the third quarter valued at about $43,665,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Lamar Advertising by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,497,702 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $200,093,000 after purchasing an additional 90,933 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in Lamar Advertising by 19,961.8% in the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 110,340 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $14,741,000 after purchasing an additional 109,790 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in Lamar Advertising by 39.8% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 51,503 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $7,017,000 after purchasing an additional 14,672 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in Lamar Advertising by 96.0% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 97,498 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $13,026,000 after purchasing an additional 47,746 shares in the last quarter. 93.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.