Lazard, Inc. $LAZ Shares Acquired by Amica Mutual Insurance Co.

Key Points

• Amica Mutual Insurance boosted its Lazard stake by 60.9% in the fourth quarter, buying 71,875 additional shares and bringing its holding to 189,903 shares worth about $9.2 million.
• Lazard reported weaker-than-expected quarterly results, posting earnings of $0.42 per share versus the $0.52 consensus and revenue of $672.98 million versus $707.42 million expected.
• The company recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, which annualizes to $2.00 per share and a yield of about 4.2%.

Amica Mutual Insurance Co. raised its stake in shares of Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ - Free Report) by 60.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 189,903 shares of the asset manager's stock after purchasing an additional 71,875 shares during the quarter. Lazard comprises 0.8% of Amica Mutual Insurance Co.'s holdings, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Amica Mutual Insurance Co. owned approximately 0.17% of Lazard worth $9,222,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of LAZ. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in shares of Lazard by 18.1% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 8,825 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $429,000 after acquiring an additional 1,354 shares during the period. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lazard in the fourth quarter worth $2,819,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Lazard by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,357,095 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $114,481,000 after acquiring an additional 6,429 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP increased its stake in shares of Lazard by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 896,328 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $43,526,000 after acquiring an additional 51,191 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Lazard by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,760,637 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $85,497,000 after acquiring an additional 38,133 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.80% of the company's stock.

Lazard Trading Down 3.6%

NYSE:LAZ opened at $47.17 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.27 billion, a PE ratio of 18.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a quick ratio of 3.51, a current ratio of 3.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. Lazard, Inc. has a 52-week low of $38.67 and a 52-week high of $58.75. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $45.51 and a 200-day simple moving average of $48.64.

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

Lazard Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on LAZ shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Lazard from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Lazard from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Citizens Jmp decreased their price objective on shares of Lazard from $65.00 to $60.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 10th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Lazard from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Lazard from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, Lazard presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $52.56.

Insider Activity at Lazard

In other news, CEO Christopher Hogbin sold 3,944 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.37, for a total transaction of $155,275.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,829 shares in the company, valued at approximately $465,707.73. This represents a 25.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Peter Richard Orszag sold 69,170 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 owned 210,942 shares in the company, valued at $8,597,995.92. This trade represents a 24.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 80,999 shares of company stock valued at $3,292,962 in the last ninety days. 0.95% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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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