Fisher Asset Management LLC Buys 38,133 Shares of Lazard, Inc. $LAZ

Key Points

• Fisher Asset Management increased its Lazard stake by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, buying 38,133 shares and bringing its total holding to 1.76 million shares valued at about $85.5 million.
• Insiders have been selling shares recently, including CEO Peter Orszag and CEO Christopher Hogbin, with total insider sales of 80,999 shares worth about $3.29 million over the past 90 days.
• Lazard reported mixed results in its latest earnings, missing EPS and revenue estimates, while its quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share implies a 4.2% annualized yield.

Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ - Free Report) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,760,637 shares of the asset manager's stock after acquiring an additional 38,133 shares during the quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC owned 1.56% of Lazard worth $85,497,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lazard by 59.5% during the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 590 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the period. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Lazard in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in shares of Lazard by 53.5% in the third quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 643 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 224 shares during the period. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new stake in Lazard during the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in Lazard during the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. 54.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Lazard

In related news, CEO Peter Richard Orszag sold 69,170 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.76, for a total value of $2,819,369.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 210,942 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,597,995.92. This represents a 24.69% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher Hogbin sold 7,885 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.37, for a total value of $318,317.45. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 15,773 shares in the company, valued at approximately $636,756.01. This represents a 33.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 80,999 shares of company stock worth $3,292,962 over the last ninety days. 0.95% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Lazard Stock Up 0.1%

NYSE:LAZ opened at $48.09 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $5.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.01, a P/E/G ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 3.51 and a current ratio of 3.51. Lazard, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $38.67 and a fifty-two week high of $58.75. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $44.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $48.68.

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

Lazard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. Lazard's payout ratio is presently 79.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on LAZ. Weiss Ratings downgraded Lazard from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Friday. Bank of America assumed coverage on Lazard in a research report on Monday, January 26th. They set a "buy" rating and a $65.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Lazard in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Lazard from $59.00 to $52.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Lazard from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price 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.

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