Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) Receives $57.13 Consensus PT from Analysts

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) has received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the eleven analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have assigned a hold recommendation and four have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $57.1250.

LAZ has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Zacks Research lowered Lazard from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Lazard in a research note on Monday, January 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $65.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Lazard from $61.00 to $59.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $59.00 price target on shares of Lazard in a report on Friday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $46.00 price target on shares of Lazard and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd.

Lazard Stock Performance

Shares of LAZ opened at $52.48 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.92 billion, a PE ratio of 24.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 2.58 and a quick ratio of 2.58. Lazard has a one year low of $31.97 and a one year high of $58.07. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $51.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $51.99.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The asset manager reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $892.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $876.32 million. Lazard had a return on equity of 34.54% and a net margin of 7.49%.The firm’s revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.78 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Lazard will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 20th. Investors of record on Monday, February 9th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 9th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 91.74%.

Institutional Trading of Lazard

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Lazard by 131.8% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 12,563 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $544,000 after purchasing an additional 7,144 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in Lazard by 27.5% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 759,867 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $32,902,000 after buying an additional 163,983 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in Lazard by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 238,288 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $10,318,000 after buying an additional 18,444 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Lazard by 34.5% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 8,542 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $430,000 after buying an additional 2,192 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Lazard by 57.2% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 918 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 334 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 54.80% of the company’s stock.

Lazard Company Profile

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.