Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) Hits New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

Lamar Advertising Company (NASDAQ:LAMR) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $139.83 and last traded at $138.6780, with a volume of 13641 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $137.84.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LAMR has been the subject of several research reports. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Lamar Advertising in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. UBS Group set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Lamar Advertising in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Lamar Advertising from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Lamar Advertising from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lamar Advertising has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $139.80.

Lamar Advertising Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market cap of $14.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.30 and a beta of 1.20. The company’s fifty day moving average is $132.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $129.23.

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) last posted its earnings results on Friday, February 20th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.18 by ($0.68). The business had revenue of $595.93 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $592.70 million. Lamar Advertising had a net margin of 25.91% and a return on equity of 58.58%. Lamar Advertising has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.720-5.830 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Lamar Advertising Company will post 8.23 EPS for the current year.

Lamar Advertising Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th were issued a dividend of $1.60 per share. This represents a $6.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 16th. This is a positive change from Lamar Advertising’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.55. Lamar Advertising’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 110.92%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lamar Advertising

In related news, EVP Ross Lamar Reilly sold 5,969 shares of Lamar Advertising stock in a transaction on Monday, March 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.65, for a total transaction of $767,911.85. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 15,850 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,039,102.50. The trade was a 27.36% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 15.24% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lamar Advertising

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LAMR. M&T Bank Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Lamar Advertising by 12,278.7% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,147,876 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $145,298,000 after acquiring an additional 1,138,603 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Lamar Advertising during the 4th quarter valued at $104,705,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lamar Advertising by 123.8% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,475,525 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $177,152,000 after acquiring an additional 816,217 shares in the last quarter. Egerton Capital UK LLP acquired a new position in Lamar Advertising in the 3rd quarter worth $88,615,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in Lamar Advertising by 97.8% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 991,990 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $121,439,000 after buying an additional 490,463 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.78% of the company’s stock.

Lamar Advertising Company Profile

Lamar Advertising Company (NASDAQ: LAMR) is one of North America’s largest outdoor advertising firms, specializing in out-of-home media solutions. Since its founding in 1902, the company has grown through a combination of organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to offer a broad portfolio of advertising products. Its core business centers on billboard advertising, encompassing traditional static billboards and a rapidly expanding network of digital displays. These assets enable advertisers to reach consumers with high-impact messaging along highways, in urban centers, and at high-traffic intersections.

In addition to highway billboards, Lamar offers a variety of supplemental out-of-home formats, including transit advertising on buses and shelters, and logo signage at travel plazas and gas stations.