KBC Group NV Increases Holdings in Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ)

KBC Group NV grew its holdings in Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) by 54.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,813 shares of the asset manager’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,338 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Lazard were worth $196,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Lazard by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC now owns 9,790 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $504,000 after buying an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in Lazard by 12.2% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 5,413 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $273,000 after acquiring an additional 589 shares in the last quarter. Great Lakes Retirement Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Lazard by 3.5% during the third quarter. Great Lakes Retirement Inc. now owns 18,646 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $939,000 after purchasing an additional 624 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Lazard by 1.8% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 40,425 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,028,000 after purchasing an additional 728 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lazard by 12.2% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 6,672 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $343,000 after purchasing an additional 728 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.80% of the company’s stock.

Lazard Stock Performance

Shares of LAZ stock opened at $52.20 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.24, a quick ratio of 2.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.72. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $52.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $51.06. The company has a market cap of $5.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.62 and a beta of 1.41. Lazard, Inc. has a 12-month low of $35.56 and a 12-month high of $61.14.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.09. Lazard had a return on equity of 44.58% and a net margin of 8.98%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Lazard, Inc. will post 3.9 EPS for the current year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.83%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 75.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on LAZ shares. UBS Group raised their price target on Lazard from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Lazard from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Lazard from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Lazard from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Lazard from $51.00 to $44.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $55.33.

Lazard Company Profile

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.