244,003 Shares in Lazard, Inc. $LAZ Purchased by Legal & General Group Plc

Key Points

• Legal & General Group Plc acquired 244,003 Lazard shares worth approximately $10.2 million in the second quarter, giving it a 0.22% stake. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 54.8% of Lazard.
• Lazard reported quarterly revenue of $786.5 million, exceeding estimates, but earnings per share of $0.12 missed the $0.34 consensus estimate. Revenue rose 1.5% year over year, while analysts expect full-year EPS of $2.18.
• Lazard maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.50, or $2.00 annually, representing a 4.6% yield; however, its payout ratio is high at 98.04%. Analysts have a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $50.38, while CEO Peter Orszag recently sold 125,000 shares.

Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in shares of Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 244,003 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $10,233,000. Legal & General Group Plc owned about 0.22% of Lazard at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAZ. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lazard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its holdings in Lazard by 53.5% in the third quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 643 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 224 shares during the period. State of Wyoming bought a new position in Lazard in the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Compass Financial Management LLC acquired a new stake in Lazard during the 2nd quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP acquired a new stake in Lazard during the 2nd quarter worth $42,000. 54.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lazard Stock Performance

Shares of LAZ stock opened at $43.24 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 2.84 and a current ratio of 2.84. Lazard, Inc. has a 52 week low of $38.67 and a 52 week high of $58.75. The company's 50 day moving average price is $42.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $44.97. The company has a market capitalization of $4.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.43.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The asset manager reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.34 by ($0.22). Lazard had a net margin of 6.95% and a return on equity of 23.58%. The company had revenue of $786.47 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $736.29 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.52 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Lazard, Inc. will post 2.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lazard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Monday, August 3rd were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.6%. Lazard's dividend payout ratio is presently 98.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $44.00 price target on shares of Lazard in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating on shares of Lazard in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on Lazard from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "sell" rating on shares of Lazard in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Lazard from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lazard has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $50.38.

Insider Transactions at Lazard

In other Lazard news, CEO Peter Richard Orszag sold 125,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.52, for a total transaction of $5,440,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 260,942 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,356,195.84. This represents a 32.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.95% of the company's stock.

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.

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