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

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

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

Insider Activity

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lazard

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LAZ. Redwood Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Lazard in the first quarter worth about $1,504,000. National Bank of Canada FI increased its holdings in shares of Lazard by 46.4% in the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 110,800 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $4,002,000 after acquiring an additional 35,103 shares during the last quarter. Amica Mutual Insurance Co. increased its holdings in shares of Lazard by 36.6% in the 4th quarter. Amica Mutual Insurance Co. now owns 149,305 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $5,196,000 after acquiring an additional 40,036 shares during the last quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC bought a new position in Lazard during the first quarter worth $1,126,000. Finally, Swedbank AB bought a new position in Lazard during the first quarter worth $6,733,000. 54.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lazard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LAZ opened at $49.88 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $5.62 billion, a P/E ratio of -142.51 and a beta of 1.40. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $40.60. Lazard has a 52 week low of $25.82 and a 52 week high of $50.13. The company has a quick ratio of 1.89, a current ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.60.

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

Lazard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 5th were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.01%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 5th. Lazard’s payout ratio is -571.43%.

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.