Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) Price Target Cut to $44.00 by Analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) had its target price decreased by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $49.00 to $44.00 in a research note released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has a market perform rating on the asset manager’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded Lazard from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Lazard from $53.00 to $47.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Zacks Research upgraded Lazard from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Argus lowered their price target on shares of Lazard from $63.00 to $52.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Lazard from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lazard presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $51.00.

Lazard Price Performance

LAZ traded down $0.22 on Friday, reaching $41.48. 1,523,697 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,901,360. Lazard has a twelve month low of $38.67 and a twelve month high of $58.75. The stock has a market cap of $4.63 billion, a PE ratio of 16.39, a P/E/G ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 3.51 and a quick ratio of 3.51. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $44.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $47.21.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The asset manager reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by ($0.10). The business had revenue of $672.98 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $707.42 million. Lazard had a return on equity of 29.30% and a net margin of 8.47%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.56 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Lazard will post 2.78 EPS for the current year.

Lazard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 79.05%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lazard during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lazard by 59.5% in the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 590 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Lazard by 53.5% in the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 643 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Lazard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, State of Wyoming purchased a new position in shares of Lazard during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.80% of the company’s stock.

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.