Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) Price Target Lowered to $46.00 at The Goldman Sachs Group

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) had its price target reduced by The Goldman Sachs Group from $53.00 to $46.00 in a research report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a sell rating on the asset manager’s stock.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Citigroup reissued a “market outperform” rating on shares of Lazard in a report on Friday, January 30th. Zacks Research raised shares of Lazard from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Lazard from $61.00 to $59.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Lazard from $59.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Bank of America started coverage on shares of Lazard in a research report on Monday, January 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $65.00 price target on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $55.75.

Lazard Trading Down 8.1%

Shares of LAZ opened at $40.56 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 2.28, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85. The stock has a market cap of $4.53 billion, a PE ratio of 18.61, a PEG ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.40. Lazard has a 1 year low of $31.97 and a 1 year high of $58.75. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $51.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $51.49.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The asset manager reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.12. Lazard had a return on equity of 33.04% and a net margin of 7.49%.The business had revenue of $892.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $876.32 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.78 EPS. Lazard’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Lazard will post 4.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 9th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.9%. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 91.74%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Lazard by 131.8% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 12,563 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $544,000 after acquiring an additional 7,144 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Lazard by 27.5% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 759,867 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $32,902,000 after acquiring an additional 163,983 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in shares of Lazard by 8.4% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 238,288 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $10,318,000 after purchasing an additional 18,444 shares in the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lifted its position in shares of Lazard by 350.0% during the second quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 63,652 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $3,054,000 after purchasing an additional 49,507 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lazard by 35.3% during the second quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,057 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $147,000 after purchasing an additional 798 shares during the last quarter. 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.