Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) Shares Gap Down - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Lazard shares gapped down at the open after closing at $48.93 and opening at $45.68, with the stock later trading around $47.51.
• The company’s latest earnings missed analyst expectations, with EPS of $0.42 versus $0.52 estimated and revenue of $672.98 million versus $707.42 million expected.
• Wall Street remains cautious overall: the stock has a consensus Hold rating and an average target price of $52.56, while insiders have been selling shares recently.

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $48.93, but opened at $45.68. Lazard shares last traded at $47.5060, with a volume of 23,552 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on LAZ shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Lazard from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Zacks Research cut Lazard from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Citigroup reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Lazard in a report on Friday, April 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Lazard from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Citizens Jmp reduced their price target on shares of Lazard from $65.00 to $60.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $52.56.

Lazard Trading Down 0.5%

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $45.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $48.63. The company has a current ratio of 3.51, a quick ratio of 3.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. The company has a market cap of $5.26 billion, a PE ratio of 18.62, a P/E/G ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.41.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 29.30%. The company had revenue of $672.98 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $707.42 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.56 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Lazard, Inc. will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Peter Richard Orszag sold 69,170 shares of the 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 of the company's stock, valued at $8,597,995.92. This represents a 24.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher Hogbin sold 3,944 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.37, for a total value of $155,275.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 11,829 shares in the company, valued at approximately $465,707.73. This represents a 25.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 80,999 shares of company stock worth $3,292,962. Insiders own 0.95% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lazard by 1.2% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,722,504 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $90,914,000 after acquiring an additional 20,591 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Lazard in the third quarter valued at $4,744,000. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Lazard in the third quarter valued at about $2,920,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Lazard in the third quarter valued at about $1,210,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Lazard by 2.2% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,180,752 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $590,120,000 after buying an additional 245,205 shares during the period. 54.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lazard Company Profile

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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