Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.10 EPS

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday. The asset manager reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.52 by ($0.10), Briefing.com reports. The firm had revenue of $673.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $707.42 million. Lazard had a net margin of 7.49% and a return on equity of 33.04%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.56 earnings per share.

Here are the key takeaways from Lazard’s conference call:

• Lazard is acquiring Campbell Lutyens to form Lazard CL, creating a leading global private capital advisory franchise expected to drive roughly $500M of combined 2027 revenue and to be EPS?accretive in 2027; the deal is primarily stock consideration with deferred/earn?out optionality and aims to close this year.
• Asset Management momentum accelerated — adjusted net revenue rose 17% to $309M, the business recorded net inflows of $9B (the largest quarterly inflows in ~20 years), AUM of ~$259B, and management fees up 25% YoY with an average fee rate around 44.6 bps.
• Financial Advisory was lumpy in Q1 (adjusted net revenue $356M, down 4%) as several large transactions slipped later in the year, but materially higher conflict clearances (>$5B deals up ~50% YoY) and active client engagement point to a constructive pipeline that is sensitive to geopolitical developments.
• Expense pressure in Q1 pushed the adjusted compensation ratio to 69.9% (adjusted comp $471M); management expects full?year comp closer to ~65.5% and is targeting operational efficiencies, but near?term margin leverage remains a concern.

Lazard Stock Down 6.7%

NYSE:LAZ opened at $45.27 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.06 billion, a PE ratio of 17.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.40 and a beta of 1.44. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $45.25 and a 200-day moving average of $48.97. Lazard has a 52 week low of $38.67 and a 52 week high of $58.75. The company has a current ratio of 2.28, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85.

Lazard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 11th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.4%. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio is 91.74%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on LAZ shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Lazard from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Lazard in a report on Friday, March 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $47.00 price objective (down from $62.00) on shares of Lazard in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Citizens Jmp lowered their price objective on Lazard from $65.00 to $60.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Lazard from $59.00 to $52.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $52.50.

Trending Headlines about Lazard

Here are the key news stories impacting Lazard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Strategic acquisition — Lazard agreed to buy Campbell Lutyens to create “Lazard CL,” expanding its private-capital advisory capabilities and positioning the firm as a leader in fund placement and secondary advisory, which could boost long-term fee pool and cross?sell opportunities. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Asset-management strength — Adjusted net revenue for Asset Management rose 17% YoY with positive net flows of $9 billion; Lazard said the asset-management business drove much of the profit increase this quarter. This supports recurring-fee growth and margin resilience. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend — Board declared a $0.50 quarterly dividend (4.4% yield on current levels), payable May 22; a healthy yield can support shareholder returns and investor sentiment. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: GAAP vs. adjusted metrics — Lazard reported first-quarter net revenue of $757M and GAAP net income of $101M ($0.91 per share), while adjusted net revenue and the EPS metric investors tracked differ; reconcilement between GAAP and adjusted figures may explain mixed market reaction. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Earnings and revenue missed estimates — Reported EPS of $0.42 missed consensus ~$0.52 and revenue of $673M missed estimates near $707M; missing both top- and bottom-line expectations is the primary catalyst for the stock decline as it shows near-term operating pressure vs. Street models. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Market focus and volume — Shares moved lower on the earnings miss with above-average volume, suggesting investors are prioritizing near-term earnings shortfalls and uncertainty over integration/timing of growth from the acquisition. Article Title

Insider Activity at Lazard

In other news, CEO Christopher Hogbin sold 7,885 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.37, for a total transaction of $318,317.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 15,773 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $636,756.01. This represents a 33.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Peter Richard Orszag sold 69,170 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.76, for a total value of $2,819,369.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 210,942 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,597,995.92. This trade represents a 24.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 80,999 shares of company stock valued at $3,292,962 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.95% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lazard

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAZ. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Lazard by 131.8% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 12,563 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $544,000 after buying an additional 7,144 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in Lazard by 27.5% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 759,867 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $32,902,000 after buying an additional 163,983 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in Lazard by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 238,288 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $10,318,000 after buying an additional 18,444 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in Lazard by 167.0% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 26,097 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,252,000 after buying an additional 16,322 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Lazard by 62.4% in the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 7,102 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $369,000 after buying an additional 2,730 shares in the last quarter. 54.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.