Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) Stock Price Down 8.2% – Here’s Why

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) shares fell 8.2% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $40.63 and last traded at $40.96. 666,760 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 40% from the average session volume of 1,115,553 shares. The stock had previously closed at $44.64.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on LAZ. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Lazard from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped 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. Citigroup reissued a “market outperform” rating on shares of Lazard in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Lazard in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $59.00 price target on shares of Lazard in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $57.13.

Lazard Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a current ratio of 2.28. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $51.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $51.62. The company has a market capitalization of $4.80 billion, a PE ratio of 19.70, a P/E/G ratio of 0.34 and a beta of 1.40.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The asset manager reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $876.32 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.78 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Lazard, Inc. will post 4.24 EPS for the current year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Investors of record on Monday, February 9th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.7%. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio is 91.74%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Alps Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Lazard during the third quarter valued at approximately $4,744,000. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Lazard during the 3rd quarter valued at $2,920,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp bought a new stake in Lazard during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,210,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lazard by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,722,504 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $90,914,000 after acquiring an additional 20,591 shares during the period. Finally, Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Lazard in the 3rd quarter valued at $3,404,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.80% of the company’s stock.

About Lazard

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.