Seaport Res Ptn Weighs in on Lazard, Inc.’s Q2 2024 Earnings (NYSE:LAZ)

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) – Stock analysts at Seaport Res Ptn dropped their Q2 2024 EPS estimates for Lazard in a note issued to investors on Thursday, April 25th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst J. Mitchell now forecasts that the asset manager will post earnings per share of $0.42 for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $0.45. The consensus estimate for Lazard’s current full-year earnings is $3.20 per share. Seaport Res Ptn also issued estimates for Lazard’s Q3 2024 earnings at $0.62 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $3.00 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $0.75 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $0.78 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $0.88 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $1.68 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $4.10 EPS.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lazard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. TheStreet upgraded shares of Lazard from a “d+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Lazard from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $42.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $49.00 target price (down previously from $51.00) on shares of Lazard in a research report on Friday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $58.00 target price on shares of Lazard in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $45.67.

Lazard Stock Up 1.2 %

LAZ stock opened at $39.44 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $4.45 billion, a PE ratio of -112.68 and a beta of 1.46. 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 firm’s fifty day moving average is $39.37 and its 200 day moving average is $35.49. Lazard has a one year low of $25.82 and a one year high of $42.24.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The asset manager reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $765.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $678.57 million. Lazard had a negative net margin of 0.63% and a positive return on equity of 37.47%. The firm’s revenue was up 41.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.26) earnings per share.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lazard

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of LAZ. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Lazard by 943.5% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,963,865 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $82,227,000 after purchasing an additional 1,775,664 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Lazard during the fourth quarter worth about $47,063,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its stake in shares of Lazard by 265.0% in the 3rd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 791,158 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $24,740,000 after acquiring an additional 574,379 shares during the period. UBS Group AG raised its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 466,301 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Lazard by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,563,521 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $296,565,000 after acquiring an additional 436,034 shares during the period. 54.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Lazard

In other news, CEO Evan L. Russo sold 75,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.35, for a total value 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 $8,950,078.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 3.14% of the company’s stock.

Lazard Dividend Announcement

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. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.07%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 3rd. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio is currently -571.41%.

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.