Head to Head Comparison: Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) and Cousins Properties (NYSE:CUZ)

Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ:LAMR) and Cousins Properties (NYSE:CUZ) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, earnings, valuation, analyst recommendations, risk, institutional ownership and dividends.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Lamar Advertising and Cousins Properties”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Lamar Advertising	$2.23 billion	5.49	$361.87 million	$4.30	28.12
Cousins Properties	$925.00 million	5.13	$45.96 million	$0.37	76.36

Lamar Advertising has higher revenue and earnings than Cousins Properties. Lamar Advertising is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Cousins Properties, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Lamar Advertising and Cousins Properties, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Lamar Advertising	0	3	2	0	2.40
Cousins Properties	0	4	6	0	2.60

Lamar Advertising currently has a consensus target price of $134.20, indicating a potential upside of 10.98%. Cousins Properties has a consensus target price of $32.50, indicating a potential upside of 15.02%. Given Cousins Properties’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Cousins Properties is more favorable than Lamar Advertising.

Dividends

Lamar Advertising pays an annual dividend of $6.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.1%. Cousins Properties pays an annual dividend of $1.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.5%. Lamar Advertising pays out 144.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Cousins Properties pays out 345.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Lamar Advertising has raised its dividend for 5 consecutive years. Lamar Advertising is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Profitability

This table compares Lamar Advertising and Cousins Properties’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Lamar Advertising	19.72%	41.85%	6.68%
Cousins Properties	6.51%	1.27%	0.70%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

93.8% of Lamar Advertising shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 94.4% of Cousins Properties shares are held by institutional investors. 15.0% of Lamar Advertising shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.4% of Cousins Properties shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility & Risk

Lamar Advertising has a beta of 1.38, indicating that its share price is 38% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Cousins Properties has a beta of 1.39, indicating that its share price is 39% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Lamar Advertising beats Cousins Properties on 11 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Lamar Advertising

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. Lamar Advertising Company was founded in 1902 and is headquartered in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

About Cousins Properties

Cousins Properties Incorporated ("Cousins") is a fully integrated, self-administered, and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT). The Company, based in Atlanta and acting through its operating partnership, Cousins Properties LP, primarily invests in Class A office buildings located in high-growth Sun Belt markets. Founded in 1958, Cousins creates shareholder value through its extensive expertise in the development, acquisition, leasing, and management of high-quality real estate assets. The Company has a comprehensive strategy in place based on a simple platform, trophy assets, and opportunistic investments.