Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) Shares Gap Up on Earnings Beat

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ)’s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $39.30, but opened at $40.37. Lazard shares last traded at $38.23, with a volume of 315,940 shares traded.

The asset manager reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.08. Lazard had a positive return on equity of 37.47% and a negative net margin of 0.63%. The business had revenue of $765.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $678.57 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.26) EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 41.1% compared to the same quarter last year.

Lazard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.13%. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -571.41%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LAZ has been the subject of several recent research reports. TheStreet raised Lazard from a “d+” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Wolfe Research raised Lazard from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $42.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $58.00 price target on shares of Lazard in a report on Thursday, April 11th. UBS Group upped their price target on Lazard from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Lazard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $45.67.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Evan L. Russo sold 75,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.35, for a total transaction of $2,951,250.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 227,448 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,950,078.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 3.86% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lazard

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Lazard by 1,165.9% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 176,491 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $6,142,000 after acquiring an additional 162,549 shares during the last quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC boosted its position in Lazard by 25.2% in the 4th quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 140,285 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $4,882,000 after buying an additional 28,250 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG boosted its position in Lazard by 84.3% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,019,121 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $31,603,000 after buying an additional 466,301 shares during the last quarter. Argent Trust Co boosted its position in Lazard by 55.1% in the 3rd quarter. Argent Trust Co now owns 47,659 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,478,000 after buying an additional 16,930 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd boosted its position in Lazard by 22.5% in the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 245,137 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $7,602,000 after buying an additional 44,976 shares during the last quarter. 54.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Lazard Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.51, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.62. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.33 and a 200 day simple moving average of $35.35.

About Lazard

Lazard, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a financial advisory and asset management firm in North and South America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and Australia. It operates in two segments, Financial Advisory and Asset Management. The Financial Advisory segment offers financial advisory services, such as mergers and acquisitions, capital markets, shareholder, sovereign, geopolitical advisory, and other strategic advisory services, as well as restructuring and liability management, and capital raising and placement services.