FY2024 Earnings Forecast for Lazard Issued By Zacks Research

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) – Equities research analysts at Zacks Research cut their FY2024 earnings per share estimates for shares of Lazard in a report released on Thursday, November 21st. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the asset manager will post earnings per share of $2.30 for the year, down from their prior estimate of $2.41. The consensus estimate for Lazard’s current full-year earnings is $2.27 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Lazard’s Q1 2025 earnings at $0.83 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $1.51 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $4.26 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $1.56 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $5.95 EPS.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The asset manager reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $646.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $644.22 million. Lazard had a net margin of 8.28% and a return on equity of 42.20%. Lazard’s revenue was up 21.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.10 earnings per share.

LAZ has been the topic of a number of other reports. UBS Group raised their price target on Lazard from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Lazard from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Lazard in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $51.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com cut Lazard from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Lazard from $59.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $53.00.

Lazard Price Performance

NYSE:LAZ opened at $58.16 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.24, a current ratio of 2.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.72. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $52.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $46.40. The stock has a market cap of $6.56 billion, a PE ratio of 23.78 and a beta of 1.38. Lazard has a 52 week low of $27.30 and a 52 week high of $61.14.

Lazard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.44%. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 79.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lazard news, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 87,770 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.08, for a total transaction of $4,219,981.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 1,553,225 shares in the company, valued at $74,679,058. The trade was a 5.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 3.86% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Lazard by 1,125.0% in the second quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 735 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 675 shares during the period. Continuum Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lazard by 58.9% in the second quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 890 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 330 shares during the period. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lazard in the third quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lazard in the second quarter valued at approximately $87,000. Finally, LWM Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lazard in the second quarter valued at approximately $88,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.80% of the company’s stock.

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.