Lamar Advertising acquires Verde Outdoor

Lamar Advertising (LAMR) announced that it has acquired the assets of Verde Outdoor. The acquisition, which closed on July 2, brought more than 1,500 billboard faces, including 80 digital displays, across 10 states to Lamar’s portfolio. The acquisition expands Lamar’s presence in key markets in the Midwest, Southeast and Mid-Atlantic. In this transaction, Verde contributed its assets to Lamar Advertising LP, the operating partnership subsidiary of Lamar that holds the company’s assets. In return, the owners of Verde received common units of Lamar LP, with each common unit of Lamar LP designed to track the value of a share of Lamar’s Class A common stock. Holders of the Lamar LP common units receive cash distributions on each common unit in an amount equal to the per share dividend paid on Lamar’s common stock. Common units of Lamar LP are convertible into cash or shares of Class A common stock of Lamar. The transaction was enabled by Lamar’s organization as an Umbrella Partnership Real Estate Investment Trust. This structure allows Lamar to issue partnership units of Lamar LP to billboard owners on a tax-deferred basis in connection with acquisitions.