Meriwether Wealth & Planning LLC Invests $319,000 in Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR)

Meriwether Wealth & Planning LLC acquired a new position in Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 2,619 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $319,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Lamar Advertising by 108.3% in the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 905,368 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $110,220,000 after purchasing an additional 470,805 shares during the period. Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI grew its stake in shares of Lamar Advertising by 11.4% in the fourth quarter. Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI now owns 7,359 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $896,000 after buying an additional 753 shares in the last quarter. Amundi grew its stake in shares of Lamar Advertising by 108.3% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 19,698 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,368,000 after buying an additional 10,241 shares in the last quarter. Rialto Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lamar Advertising in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. grew its stake in shares of Lamar Advertising by 27.5% in the fourth quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 30,760 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $3,745,000 after buying an additional 6,637 shares in the last quarter. 93.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lamar Advertising Trading Up 1.6 %

NASDAQ:LAMR opened at $125.28 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.48. The business’s 50 day moving average is $124.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $127.99. Lamar Advertising has a 52 week low of $108.80 and a 52 week high of $139.88. The company has a market cap of $12.83 billion, a PE ratio of 35.49 and a beta of 1.53.

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The real estate investment trust reported $2.21 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.74. Lamar Advertising had a return on equity of 30.20% and a net margin of 16.40%. The company had revenue of $579.57 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $583.19 million. On average, analysts predict that Lamar Advertising will post 7.92 EPS for the current year.

Lamar Advertising Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.55 per share. This represents a $6.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Lamar Advertising’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. Lamar Advertising’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 175.64%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on LAMR. Citigroup increased their target price on Lamar Advertising from $121.76 to $128.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Lamar Advertising from $129.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Lamar Advertising from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. TD Cowen increased their target price on Lamar Advertising from $142.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price 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. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $134.60.

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.