Company Description
Lamar Advertising Company (NASDAQ: LAMR) is an outdoor advertising company that operates as a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT). According to available information, the company rents space for advertising on billboards, buses, shelters, benches, logo plates and in airport terminals. Lamar also states that it offers customers a fully integrated service that covers all aspects of their display requirements, from ad copy production through to placement and maintenance. The company identifies two operating segments: a primary billboard segment and an other segment, with key revenue generated from the billboard segment.
Business model and REIT structure
Lamar Advertising Company describes itself as a REIT, which means it focuses on owning and operating income-generating assets and distributing a significant portion of its taxable income to shareholders. In its public communications and SEC filings, Lamar highlights measures such as funds from operations (FFO), adjusted funds from operations (AFFO), adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow as key indicators of operating performance. These non-GAAP metrics are used by management to evaluate the company’s operations and are commonly referenced by investors analyzing REITs.
The company’s billboard segment is its primary source of revenue. Lamar rents advertising space on billboard structures and related out-of-home assets, while the other segment includes additional formats such as buses, shelters, benches, logo plates and airport terminal displays. Management also references outdoor operating income and acquisition-adjusted results as tools to assess the performance of acquired or divested assets over time.
Industry and operating focus
Lamar positions itself as an owner and operator of outdoor advertising and logo sign displays. Its public statements emphasize the continued popularity of outdoor advertising as an advertising medium and the importance of demand for advertising in the broader economy. The company’s risk factor disclosures note that its results are influenced by the state of the economy and financial markets and by regulation of the outdoor advertising industry at federal, state and local levels.
Lamar’s communications also reference a digital deployment strategy, indicating that the company pays attention to the evolution of out-of-home formats. In addition, Lamar discusses the impact of acquisitions and divestitures, and it uses acquisition-adjusted revenue and acquisition-adjusted EBITDA to show how newly acquired assets would have contributed in prior periods.
Capital structure, liquidity and financing activity
Lamar’s SEC filings and press releases describe a capital structure that includes senior credit facilities, an accounts receivable securitization program, term loans and senior notes issued by its wholly owned subsidiary Lamar Media Corp. In 2025, Lamar Media entered into an amendment to its senior credit agreement that established a new Term B Loan facility with a stated maturity in 2032. Proceeds from the Term B Loans were used to repay an existing Term B facility and reduce borrowings on the revolving credit facility.
On September 25, 2025, Lamar Media completed an institutional private placement of 5.375% Senior Notes due 2033, with net proceeds used to repay indebtedness under the revolving portion of the senior credit facility and the accounts receivable securitization program. Lamar’s filings describe covenants associated with these notes, such as limitations on incurring additional debt, making certain distributions, creating liens, entering into affiliate transactions, and selling assets, along with defined events of default and redemption provisions.
The company also discloses liquidity information in its earnings releases, detailing available borrowing capacity under its revolving senior credit facility, availability under its accounts receivable securitization program and cash and cash equivalents. Management notes that these financing arrangements and liquidity levels are important for funding operations, refinancing debt and pursuing acquisitions.
Growth, acquisitions and operating performance metrics
Lamar reports quarterly operating results that include net revenues, net income, adjusted EBITDA, FFO, AFFO and free cash flow. It also provides acquisition-adjusted net revenue and acquisition-adjusted EBITDA to reflect the impact of acquired or divested assets as if they had been owned in prior periods. These measures are presented as supplemental to GAAP metrics and are used by management to evaluate trends in the business.
The company’s disclosures in 2025 reference acquisitions of out-of-home assets and an acquisition involving assets of Verde Outdoor, which contributed more than 1,500 billboard faces across ten states to Lamar’s operating partnership. In connection with that transaction, Lamar’s operating partnership issued common units as consideration, which are redeemable after a holding period for cash or, at the company’s option, shares of Class A common stock. Lamar also reports a gain from the sale of its equity interest in Vistar Media, Inc., and notes that this gain affected year-over-year comparisons of net income.
Management emphasizes non-GAAP measures as useful indicators of current operating performance and explains how each metric is calculated. For example, adjusted EBITDA is defined as net income before income taxes, interest, certain gains and losses, equity in earnings or loss of investees, stock-based compensation, depreciation and amortization, transaction expenses and capitalized contract fulfillment costs, net. FFO and AFFO are defined using the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts (NAREIT) framework, with additional adjustments described in detail in Lamar’s public materials.
Dividends and REIT distributions
As a REIT, Lamar highlights its cash dividend policy. In 2025, the company’s board of directors declared quarterly cash dividends on its Class A and Class B common stock and, in one instance, a special cash dividend. These dividends are documented in press releases and corresponding Form 8-K filings, which specify record dates and payment dates. Lamar also provides guidance on expected aggregate distributions for the year, subject to board approval, consistent with its REIT status and distribution requirements.
Risk factors and regulatory environment
Lamar’s forward-looking statements and risk factor updates point to several areas of focus for investors. The company notes that its significant indebtedness, the state of the economy and financial markets, the demand for advertising, and the continued popularity of outdoor advertising are important considerations. It also cites the need for and ability to obtain additional funding, the importance of maintaining REIT qualification, and the impact of changes in tax laws and accounting principles.
Additional risks identified include regulation of the outdoor advertising industry, integration of acquired assets, the ability to renew expiring contracts at favorable rates, implementation of its digital deployment strategy, and the market for its Class A common stock. Lamar’s filings encourage readers to review the risk factors in its Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K.
Stock information and exchange listing
Lamar Advertising Company’s Class A common stock is registered under Section 12(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and trades on The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC under the symbol LAMR. The company files current, quarterly and annual reports with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including Forms 8-K, 10-Q and 10-K, which provide detailed information on its financial condition, results of operations, risk factors and corporate actions.
Management metrics and investor communications
In its earnings releases and SEC filings, Lamar explains how management uses non-GAAP performance indicators such as adjusted EBITDA, free cash flow, FFO, AFFO, diluted AFFO per share, outdoor operating income, acquisition-adjusted results and acquisition-adjusted consolidated expense. The company states that these measures are not intended to replace GAAP performance measures but are provided as meaningful supplemental indicators of operating performance.
Lamar regularly issues press releases announcing quarterly results, dividend declarations, financing transactions and leadership changes, and it participates in investor conferences. The company also hosts conference calls to discuss results and answer questions about operations, and it makes audio webcasts of these events available for a limited time.