Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Has $12.16 Million Stock Position in Lazard, Inc. $LAZ

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) by 3,250.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 250,335 shares of the asset manager’s stock after purchasing an additional 242,864 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.’s holdings in Lazard were worth $12,156,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in Lazard by 1.2% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,722,504 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $90,914,000 after purchasing an additional 20,591 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Lazard in the third quarter worth about $4,744,000. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Lazard in the third quarter worth about $2,920,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp acquired a new stake in Lazard in the third quarter worth about $1,210,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Lazard by 2.2% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,180,752 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $590,120,000 after purchasing an additional 245,205 shares during the period. 54.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Lazard

In other Lazard news, CEO Peter Richard Orszag sold 69,170 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.76, for a total transaction of $2,819,369.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 210,942 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,597,995.92. This trade represents a 24.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christopher Hogbin sold 7,885 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.37, for a total value of $318,317.45. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 15,773 shares in the company, valued at approximately $636,756.01. This trade represents a 33.33% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 80,999 shares of company stock worth $3,292,962. Company insiders own 0.95% of the company’s stock.

Lazard Price Performance

Shares of LAZ opened at $47.67 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 3.51, a quick ratio of 3.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. Lazard, Inc. has a 1 year low of $38.67 and a 1 year high of $58.75. The stock has a market cap of $5.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.44. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $44.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $48.68.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last issued its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The asset manager reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by ($0.10). Lazard had a return on equity of 29.30% and a net margin of 8.47%.The company had revenue of $672.98 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $707.42 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.56 EPS. Lazard’s quarterly revenue was up 16.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Lazard, Inc. will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 11th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.2%. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 79.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on LAZ shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Lazard from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Bank of America started coverage on Lazard in a research report on Monday, January 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $65.00 price objective for the company. Citizens Jmp lowered their price objective on Lazard from $65.00 to $60.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Wall Street Zen lowered Lazard from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 14th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Lazard in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $52.56.

About Lazard

Lazard Ltd. (NYSE: LAZ) is a leading global financial advisory and asset management firm, offering a comprehensive suite of services to corporations, governments and individuals. Founded in 1848, Lazard has built a reputation for providing independent advice and innovative solutions in complex financial transactions. The firm is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol LAZ and maintains its headquarters in Hamilton, Bermuda.

In its Financial Advisory segment, Lazard assists clients with mergers and acquisitions, restructurings, capital structure optimization and strategic planning.