Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $48.33.

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $56.00 price target (up from $49.00) on shares of Lazard in a report on Friday, July 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Lazard from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. StockNews.com raised shares of Lazard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Lazard from $53.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd.

Lazard Stock Performance

LAZ stock opened at $44.28 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $40.97 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $39.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.60. The firm has a market cap of $4.99 billion, a PE ratio of -126.51 and a beta of 1.40. Lazard has a 1-year low of $25.82 and a 1-year high of $49.78.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The asset manager reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.17. Lazard had a return on equity of 41.78% and a net margin of 5.50%. The company had revenue of $685.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $625.40 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.24 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Lazard will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Lazard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.52%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 5th. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio is currently -571.43%.

Insider Transactions at Lazard

In other news, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 207,000 shares of Lazard stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.23, for a total transaction of $9,362,610.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 1,729,722 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $78,235,326.06. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Lazard news, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 6,762 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total value of $270,480.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 1,982,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $79,313,160. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 207,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.23, for a total transaction of $9,362,610.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 1,729,722 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $78,235,326.06. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 414,000 shares of company stock valued at $17,683,738. Insiders own 3.86% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Lazard

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAZ. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Lazard by 1,165.9% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 176,491 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $6,142,000 after purchasing an additional 162,549 shares during the last quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC increased its position in shares of Lazard by 25.2% during the fourth quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 140,285 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $4,882,000 after buying an additional 28,250 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its stake in Lazard by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 527,077 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $18,342,000 after acquiring an additional 2,225 shares in the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp boosted its stake in Lazard by 14.6% during the fourth quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 8,114 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $282,000 after acquiring an additional 1,031 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amica Mutual Insurance Co. boosted its stake in Lazard by 36.6% during the fourth quarter. Amica Mutual Insurance Co. now owns 149,305 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $5,196,000 after acquiring an additional 40,036 shares in the last quarter. 54.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.