Lamar Advertising 4Q revenue expected to fall

BATON ROUGE, La. - Lamar Advertising Co. on Thursday said it expects fourth-quarter revenue to fall about 9 percent from the same period a year earlier to a level below Wall Street analysts' forecasts.

Lamar said it expects net revenue of about $286 million for the quarter ending Dec. 31. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect $291.3 million, on average.

Baton Rouge-based Lamar, which owns and operates outdoor advertising and logo sign displays, did not issue a fourth-quarter profit forecast. Analysts expect the company to post a loss of 5 cents per share.

Citing an economic slump that has hurt demand for advertising, Lamar began a campaign about a month ago to cut operating expenses, capital expenditures and acquisition costs. It expects the moves to free up cash to reduce debt.

Also on Thursday, Lamar reported net income for the three months that ended Sept. 30 of nearly $3.8 million, or 4 cents per share, down from a profit of $14.5 million, or 15 cents per share, in last year's third quarter. Third-quarter revenue dipped to $312.5 million from $314.3 million.

Shares of Lamar closed Wednesday at $15.32, down from $54.84 a year ago. The stock traded around $35 as recently as six weeks ago.

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