Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) Reaches New 52-Week Low - Here's Why

Key Points

• Lazard shares fell to a new 52-week low of $34.63, below the 50-day and 200-day moving averages of $40.50 and $43.21, respectively.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but leans toward “Hold”: the consensus price target is $46.25, while Goldman Sachs cut its target to $32 and maintained a “Sell” rating.
• Lazard missed quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $0.12 versus the $0.34 consensus estimate, though revenue exceeded forecasts. The company continues to pay a $0.50 quarterly dividend, yielding approximately 5.8%.

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week low on Wednesday. The stock traded as low as $34.63 and last traded at $34.8210, with a volume of 247,576 shares. The stock had previously closed at $36.52.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LAZ has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Lazard from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, September 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on Lazard from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on Lazard from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock 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. Finally, Capital One Financial set a $38.00 price objective on Lazard in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $46.25.

Lazard Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 2.84 and a current ratio of 2.84. The company has a market cap of $3.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a fifty day moving average of $40.50 and a two-hundred day moving average of $43.21.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The asset manager reported $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.34 by ($0.22). The firm had revenue of $786.47 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $736.29 million. Lazard had a return on equity of 23.58% and a net margin of 6.95%. Lazard's revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.52 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Lazard, Inc. will post 2.10 EPS for the current year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 3rd were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.8%. Lazard's dividend payout ratio is currently 98.04%.

Insider Transactions at Lazard

In related news, CEO Peter Orszag sold 125,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.52, for a total value of $5,440,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 260,942 shares in the company, valued at $11,356,195.84. This trade represents a 32.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.95% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lazard

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAZ. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Lazard during the 2nd quarter worth about $379,092,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Lazard by 10.1% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,900,615 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $80,713,000 after purchasing an additional 174,199 shares during the period. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lazard during the 2nd quarter valued at about $67,275,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in shares of Lazard by 3.5% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,431,358 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $60,806,000 after purchasing an additional 48,607 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of Lazard during the 2nd quarter valued at about $42,122,000. 54.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lazard Company Profile

Lazard Ltd. NYSE: LAZ is a global financial advisory and asset management firm. The company provides advice to corporations, financial institutions, governments and other public-sector entities on strategic matters, including mergers and acquisitions, capital structure, restructuring, shareholder relations and other corporate finance transactions.

Through its asset management business, Lazard manages investment strategies for institutions, financial intermediaries and private clients across equities, fixed income, alternatives and other asset classes.

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