Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) Shares Gap Up Following Strong Earnings

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. 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.

The asset manager reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $765.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $678.57 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($0.26) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 41.1% compared to the same quarter last year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LAZ has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wolfe Research upgraded Lazard from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $42.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $49.00 price target (down previously from $51.00) on shares of Lazard in a research report on Friday. UBS Group upped their price target on Lazard from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. TheStreet upgraded Lazard from a “d+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Lazard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average 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 company’s 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 227,448 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,950,078.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 3.86% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 162,549 shares in the last quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC increased its holdings in Lazard by 25.2% during the 4th quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 140,285 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $4,882,000 after purchasing an additional 28,250 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG increased its holdings in Lazard by 84.3% during the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,019,121 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $31,603,000 after purchasing an additional 466,301 shares in the last quarter. Argent Trust Co increased its holdings in Lazard by 55.1% during the 3rd quarter. Argent Trust Co now owns 47,659 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,478,000 after purchasing an additional 16,930 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its holdings in Lazard by 22.5% during the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 245,137 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $7,602,000 after purchasing an additional 44,976 shares in the last quarter. 54.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lazard Price Performance

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

Lazard Company Profile

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.