Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) Shares Sold by Covestor Ltd

Covestor Ltd lessened its position in shares of Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) by 16.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,595 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 303 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd’s holdings in Lazard were worth $80,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of LAZ. Janus Henderson Group PLC acquired a new position in shares of Lazard during the first quarter worth $65,650,000. Claro Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Lazard by 10,306.7% during the 3rd quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 1,235,793 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $62,259,000 after acquiring an additional 1,223,918 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Lazard by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,250,049 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $113,357,000 after acquiring an additional 206,295 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Lazard during the 2nd quarter worth about $7,102,000. Finally, Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in Lazard during the first quarter worth approximately $6,733,000. 54.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lazard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LAZ opened at $54.92 on Thursday. Lazard, Inc. has a one year low of $26.25 and a one year high of $61.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.88 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $51.26 and a 200-day simple moving average of $45.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 2.24 and a current ratio of 2.24.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The asset manager reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.41 by ($0.03). Lazard had a net margin of 8.28% and a return on equity of 42.20%. The company had revenue of $646.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $644.22 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.10 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 21.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Lazard, Inc. will post 2.31 EPS for the current year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.64%. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 79.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lazard

In other news, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 86,728 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.02, for a total value of $4,338,134.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 1,640,995 shares in the company, valued at approximately $82,082,569.90. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 1,999 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.01, for a total transaction of $99,969.99. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 1,727,723 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $86,403,427.23. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 86,728 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.02, for a total value of $4,338,134.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 1,640,995 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $82,082,569.90. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 176,497 shares of company stock valued at $8,658,086. 3.86% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. JMP Securities increased their price target on shares of Lazard from $55.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Lazard from $59.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Lazard from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. UBS Group raised their price objective on Lazard from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Lazard in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $51.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lazard presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $53.00.

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.