Short Interest in Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) Expands By 24.0%

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,580,000 shares, an increase of 24.0% from the October 15th total of 2,080,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 384,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 6.7 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LAMR has been the subject of several analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded Lamar Advertising from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Lamar Advertising from $117.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Lamar Advertising from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Lamar Advertising from $132.00 to $124.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on Lamar Advertising from $142.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Lamar Advertising presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $132.40.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lamar Advertising

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LAMR. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Lamar Advertising by 45.5% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,974,848 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $263,840,000 after purchasing an additional 617,356 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of Lamar Advertising by 81.3% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 937,440 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $112,052,000 after purchasing an additional 420,311 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lamar Advertising during the third quarter worth $43,665,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lamar Advertising by 49,140.4% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 285,102 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $38,090,000 after purchasing an additional 284,523 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Centersquare Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lamar Advertising by 82.8% during the first quarter. Centersquare Investment Management LLC now owns 621,763 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $72,031,000 after purchasing an additional 281,582 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.78% of the company’s stock.

Lamar Advertising Price Performance

NASDAQ:LAMR traded down $0.80 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $126.35. 630,633 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 420,258. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $132.11 and its 200-day moving average is $123.38. The stock has a market cap of $12.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.27 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.48, a current ratio of 0.56 and a quick ratio of 0.41. Lamar Advertising has a 1-year low of $95.83 and a 1-year high of $139.88.

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) last announced its earnings results on Friday, November 8th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.17 by ($0.73). The company had revenue of $564.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $568.91 million. Lamar Advertising had a net margin of 23.46% and a return on equity of 42.58%. Lamar Advertising’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.04 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Lamar Advertising will post 7.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lamar Advertising Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were issued a dividend of $1.40 per share. This is a boost from Lamar Advertising’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 18th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.43%. Lamar Advertising’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 112.00%.

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.