Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Cuts Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) Price Target to $44.00

Key Points

• Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut Lazard’s price target from $49 to $44 and kept a market perform rating, implying about 5.4% upside from the previous close.
• Other analysts remain mixed: Citigroup reiterated outperform, while Morgan Stanley and UBS were more cautious; the overall consensus rating is Hold with an average target of $50.89.
• Lazard recently missed earnings estimates, reporting $0.42 EPS versus the expected $0.52 and revenue of $672.98 million versus $707.42 million, though revenue still rose 16.8% year over year.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ - Get Free Report) had its price target dropped by investment analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $49.00 to $44.00 in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "market perform" rating on the asset manager's stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods' price objective indicates a potential upside of 5.37% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the stock. Citigroup restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Lazard in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Argus lowered their price objective on Lazard from $63.00 to $52.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Weiss Ratings lowered Lazard from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and set a $44.00 target price on shares of Lazard in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Lazard from $53.00 to $47.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $50.89.

Lazard Price Performance

LAZ stock opened at $41.76 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $44.98 and a 200-day moving average of $47.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.43. Lazard has a 12 month low of $38.67 and a 12 month high of $58.75. The company has a current ratio of 3.51, a quick ratio of 3.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The asset manager reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $707.42 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.56 EPS. The business's revenue was up 16.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Lazard will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Teza Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lazard by 2.4% in the 2nd quarter. Teza Capital Management LLC now owns 8,059 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $387,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lazard by 59.5% during the 4th 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 last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc grew its holdings in shares of Lazard by 53.5% during the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 643 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Xponance LLC raised its position in Lazard by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Xponance LLC now owns 6,454 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $313,000 after purchasing an additional 232 shares during the period. Finally, Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC raised its position in Lazard by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC now owns 47,628 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $2,313,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares during the period. 54.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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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