Eastern Bank Takes Position in Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR)

Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 511 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $68,000.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Centersquare Investment Management LLC increased its position 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 in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its position in shares of Lamar Advertising by 2.3% during the second quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 399,678 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $47,774,000 after purchasing an additional 8,857 shares in the last quarter. Csenge Advisory Group purchased a new stake in shares of Lamar Advertising during the second quarter worth approximately $722,000. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Lamar Advertising by 13.1% during the second quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 60,442 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $7,225,000 after purchasing an additional 6,979 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in shares of Lamar Advertising by 67.6% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 99,127 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $11,837,000 after purchasing an additional 39,990 shares in the last quarter. 93.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lamar Advertising Stock Performance

Shares of Lamar Advertising stock opened at $134.69 on Friday. Lamar Advertising has a 52 week low of $79.94 and a 52 week high of $139.88. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $129.56 and its 200-day simple moving average is $121.42. The firm has a market cap of $13.78 billion, a PE ratio of 27.32 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.31.

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.01 by ($0.67). Lamar Advertising had a net margin of 23.34% and a return on equity of 42.18%. The business had revenue of $565.25 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $564.96 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.90 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Lamar Advertising will post 7.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Lamar Advertising Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were paid a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 18th. This is a positive change from Lamar Advertising’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Lamar Advertising’s dividend payout ratio is 113.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on LAMR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Lamar Advertising from $117.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on Lamar Advertising in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $132.00 target price for the company. Citigroup cut Lamar Advertising from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $122.00 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday, July 11th. StockNews.com upgraded Lamar Advertising from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price on Lamar Advertising from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $125.00.

Lamar Advertising 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.