Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) Given Consensus Rating of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Analysts hold a neutral view of Lazard: Eleven brokerages give the stock a consensus “Hold” rating, with three sells, four holds and four buys. The average 12-month price target is $50.38 versus a reported share price of $45.20.
• Lazard’s latest quarterly earnings fell short of expectations, with EPS of $0.12 versus a $0.34 consensus estimate, although revenue of $786.47 million exceeded forecasts and rose 1.5% year over year.
• Institutional investors own 54.8% of Lazard’s stock, while the company maintains a $0.50 quarterly dividend, equivalent to a 4.4% annualized yield and a 98.04% payout ratio.

Shares of Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the eleven brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have issued a hold recommendation and four have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $50.3750.

A number of analysts have weighed in on LAZ shares. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $44.00 target price on shares of Lazard in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Lazard from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Citigroup reissued a "market outperform" rating on shares of Lazard in a report on Friday, July 24th. Zacks Research lowered Lazard from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Lazard from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Lazard during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $379,092,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Lazard in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $80,169,000. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new position in shares of Lazard during the second quarter valued at $67,275,000. M&T Bank Corp raised its stake in shares of Lazard by 2,763.4% during the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,405,899 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $68,270,000 after acquiring an additional 1,356,800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of Lazard by 13.5% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,807,320 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $427,685,000 after purchasing an additional 1,047,869 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.80% of the company's stock.

Lazard Trading Up 2.6%

LAZ opened at $45.20 on Thursday. The company's 50 day moving average is $42.90 and its 200-day moving average is $45.62. Lazard has a 1-year low of $38.67 and a 1-year high of $58.75. The company has a current ratio of 2.84, a quick ratio of 2.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87. The company has a market cap of $5.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.16, a PEG ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.43.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The asset manager reported $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.34 by ($0.22). The company had revenue of $786.47 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $736.29 million. Lazard had a net margin of 6.95% and a return on equity of 23.58%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.52 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Lazard will post 2.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. Lazard's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 98.04%.

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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