Principal Financial Group Inc. Purchases 9,242 Shares of Lamar Advertising Company $LAMR

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Lamar Advertising Company (NASDAQ:LAMR) by 5.0% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 195,441 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,242 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Lamar Advertising were worth $24,755,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Praxis Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Lamar Advertising by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Praxis Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,846 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $360,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Argent Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lamar Advertising by 0.6% in the first quarter. Argent Advisors Inc. now owns 14,426 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,827,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Glenmede Investment Management LP boosted its position in shares of Lamar Advertising by 3.2% in the third quarter. Glenmede Investment Management LP now owns 2,590 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $317,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the period. REAP Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Lamar Advertising by 13.5% in the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 706 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $89,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Greenleaf Trust grew its stake in shares of Lamar Advertising by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 5,540 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $701,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.78% of the company’s stock.

Lamar Advertising Trading Down 0.7%

LAMR opened at $161.16 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.73 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.33. Lamar Advertising Company has a twelve month low of $113.66 and a twelve month high of $164.38. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $153.57 and a 200 day simple moving average of $139.81.

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $528.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $522.86 million. Lamar Advertising had a net margin of 24.01% and a return on equity of 55.53%. Analysts predict that Lamar Advertising Company will post 8.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lamar Advertising Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 16th were paid a $1.60 dividend. This represents a $6.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 16th. Lamar Advertising’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 118.08%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on LAMR. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Lamar Advertising in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Citigroup lowered shares of Lamar Advertising from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $145.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Lamar Advertising from $136.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Morgan Stanley set a $145.00 price target on shares of Lamar Advertising in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price target on Lamar Advertising from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $150.50.

Lamar Advertising 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.