Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) Shares Acquired by Callahan Advisors LLC

Callahan Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ - Free Report) by 9.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 57,801 shares of the asset manager's stock after purchasing an additional 4,836 shares during the period. Callahan Advisors LLC owned 0.05% of Lazard worth $2,503,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in Lazard by 28.0% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,298 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $118,000 after purchasing an additional 503 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in Lazard by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 26,169 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,347,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Lazard during the 4th quarter worth about $2,285,000. Amundi grew its position in Lazard by 31,967.0% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 936,676 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $46,886,000 after purchasing an additional 933,755 shares during the period. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC grew its position in Lazard by 85.8% during the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 1,137 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 525 shares during the period. 54.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lazard Price Performance

LAZ traded down $0.02 during trading on Friday, reaching $51.99. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,242,041 shares, compared to its average volume of 966,664. The company has a quick ratio of 3.24, a current ratio of 3.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.60. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $45.37 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $46.14. Lazard, Inc. has a 1 year low of $31.97 and a 1 year high of $61.14. The company has a market cap of $5.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.11 and a beta of 1.33.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The asset manager reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.27. Lazard had a net margin of 10.15% and a return on equity of 37.64%. The firm had revenue of $669.16 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $698.39 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.66 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 15.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Lazard, Inc. will post 4.24 EPS for the current year.

Lazard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Monday, May 5th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.85%. Lazard's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.69%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Lazard from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Lazard from $33.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Lazard from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Lazard from $38.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Lazard from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lazard currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $48.33.

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.