Inceptionr LLC Takes Position in Lazard, Inc. $LAZ

Inceptionr LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 13,585 shares of the asset manager’s stock, valued at approximately $717,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Teza Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Lazard by 2.4% in the 2nd quarter. Teza Capital Management LLC now owns 8,059 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $387,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares during the period. Lesa Sroufe & Co boosted its holdings in shares of Lazard by 0.4% during the third quarter. Lesa Sroufe & Co now owns 52,836 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,789,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares during the last quarter. AMG National Trust Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Lazard by 0.6% during the third quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 44,214 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,334,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of Lazard by 1.2% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 23,007 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,214,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares during the period. Finally, Great Lakes Retirement Inc. increased its stake in Lazard by 1.7% in the third quarter. Great Lakes Retirement Inc. now owns 22,583 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,192,000 after purchasing an additional 388 shares during the last quarter. 54.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Lazard from $59.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Lazard in a report on Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Lazard from $61.00 to $59.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $59.00 target price on shares of Lazard in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Lazard in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lazard currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $57.13.

Lazard Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:LAZ opened at $43.16 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $51.69 and a two-hundred day moving average of $51.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.82 billion, a PE ratio of 19.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85, a current ratio of 2.28 and a quick ratio of 2.28. Lazard, Inc. has a 12 month low of $31.97 and a 12 month high of $58.75.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The asset manager reported $0.80 earnings per share 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 period in the previous year, the company posted $0.78 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Lazard, Inc. will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 9th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. Lazard’s payout ratio is 91.74%.

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.