Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the seven analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $48.71.

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on LAZ shares. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Lazard in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $51.00 price objective for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $56.00 price target (up previously from $49.00) on shares of Lazard in a research report on Friday, July 26th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lazard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Lazard from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Lazard from $53.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd.

Lazard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LAZ opened at $49.75 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $46.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.86. Lazard has a 1-year low of $25.82 and a 1-year high of $50.26. The firm has a market cap of $5.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -142.14 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.60.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The asset manager reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $685.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $625.40 million. Lazard had a return on equity of 41.78% and a net margin of 5.50%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.24 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Lazard will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Lazard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Investors of record on Monday, August 5th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 5th. Lazard’s payout ratio is -571.43%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 46,107 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.19, for a total value of $1,853,040.33. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 1,936,722 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $77,836,857.18. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Lazard news, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 87,770 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.08, for a total value of $4,219,981.60. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 1,553,225 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $74,679,058. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 46,107 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.19, for a total value of $1,853,040.33. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 1,936,722 shares in the company, valued at approximately $77,836,857.18. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 429,604 shares of company stock worth $19,873,736 over the last three months. Insiders own 3.86% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lazard

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda increased its stake in Lazard by 127.0% in the 2nd quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda now owns 231,452 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $8,837,000 after purchasing an additional 129,490 shares in the last quarter. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lazard during the second quarter worth about $955,000. Algert Global LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lazard during the second quarter worth approximately $336,000. Ascent Group LLC raised its holdings in Lazard by 22.7% in the second quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 7,585 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $290,000 after acquiring an additional 1,405 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dark Forest Capital Management LP bought a new position in Lazard during the 2nd quarter valued at $806,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.80% of the company’s stock.

About Lazard

Lazard, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a financial advisory and asset management firm in North and South America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and Australia. It operates in two segments, Financial Advisory and Asset Management. The Financial Advisory segment offers financial advisory services, such as mergers and acquisitions, capital markets, shareholder, sovereign, geopolitical advisory, and other strategic advisory services, as well as restructuring and liability management, and capital raising and placement services.