Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Buys New Shares in Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ)

Key Points

• Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired 5,472 shares of Lazard, valued at approximately $237,000, during the 1st quarter of the year.
• Research analyst target prices for Lazard show a range of expectations, with JMP Securities setting a target of $60.00 and Wells Fargo raising theirs from $38.00 to $50.00.
• Lazard recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, resulting in a 3.9% dividend yield for investors.

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in shares of Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 5,472 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $237,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of LAZ. Calton & Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Lazard during the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lazard by 54.3% in the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 977 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 344 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. bought a new position in Lazard during the 1st quarter valued at $50,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Lazard by 164.1% in the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,244 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 773 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Lazard by 119.5% in the fourth quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 2,028 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $104,000 after purchasing an additional 1,104 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 54.80% of the company's stock.

Lazard Price Performance

Shares of LAZ stock traded down $0.17 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $51.72. The stock had a trading volume of 608,818 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,128,755. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.15, a current ratio of 2.53 and a quick ratio of 2.53. Lazard, Inc. has a one year low of $31.97 and a one year high of $61.14. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $48.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.84 and a beta of 1.35.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The asset manager reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $796.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $674.13 million. Lazard had a net margin of 9.96% and a return on equity of 34.33%. The business's revenue was up 16.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.52 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Lazard, Inc. will post 4.24 EPS for the current year.

Lazard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 4th will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 4th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Lazard's payout ratio is 68.97%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JMP Securities set a $60.00 target price on shares of Lazard and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Lazard from $38.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Lazard from $33.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Lazard from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Lazard from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $51.50.

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.