Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) Price Target Raised to $54.00 at UBS Group

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) had its price objective raised by UBS Group from $50.00 to $54.00 in a report issued on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the asset manager’s stock.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the company. StockNews.com raised Lazard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Lazard from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Wolfe Research cut Lazard from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Lazard from $51.00 to $44.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Lazard from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $55.33.

Lazard Stock Performance

Shares of LAZ opened at $53.73 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.72, a current ratio of 2.24 and a quick ratio of 2.24. Lazard has a 12-month low of $35.56 and a 12-month high of $61.14. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $52.49 and its 200 day moving average price is $51.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.06 billion, a PE ratio of 20.20 and a beta of 1.41.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.09. Lazard had a net margin of 8.98% and a return on equity of 44.58%. Equities research analysts forecast that Lazard will post 3.9 EPS for the current year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.72%. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 75.19%.

Institutional Trading of Lazard

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Berbice Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Lazard in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Lazard during the 3rd quarter valued at $50,000. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lazard during the 4th quarter valued at $53,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Lazard in the 4th quarter worth $60,000. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lazard by 209.0% in the fourth quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,267 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 857 shares during the period. 54.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.