Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Cuts Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) Price Target to $42.00

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) had its price objective lowered by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $44.00 to $42.00 in a report published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a market perform rating on the asset manager’s stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. Citizens Jmp dropped their price target on shares of Lazard from $65.00 to $60.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Lazard in a report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “sell” rating on shares of Lazard in a research note on Thursday. Argus cut their price target on Lazard from $63.00 to $52.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Lazard from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Four investment 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, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $50.38.

Lazard Trading Down 0.3%

NYSE LAZ opened at $44.21 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 3.51 and a current ratio of 2.84. The firm has a market cap of $4.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.67, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.43. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $44.24 and a 200-day simple moving average of $46.75. Lazard has a one year low of $38.67 and a one year high of $58.75.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The asset manager reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.34 by ($0.22). The business had revenue of $786.02 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $736.29 million. Lazard had a return on equity of 23.58% and a net margin of 6.95%.Lazard’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.52 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Lazard will post 2.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Monday, August 3rd will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 3rd. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio is 98.04%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lazard

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Lazard in the 4th quarter valued at $80,169,000. M&T Bank Corp lifted its position in Lazard by 2,763.4% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,405,899 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $68,270,000 after acquiring an additional 1,356,800 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Lazard by 13.5% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,807,320 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $427,685,000 after acquiring an additional 1,047,869 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in Lazard in the second quarter valued at $34,305,000. Finally, Algebris UK Ltd. acquired a new position in Lazard in the fourth quarter valued at $24,424,000. 54.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More Lazard News

Here are the key news stories impacting Lazard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Lazard expanded its buyback plan while continuing to grow Asset Management revenue and assets under management, which supports the long-term capital return and earnings story. LAZ Stock Down as Q2 Earnings Lag on Higher Costs, Expands Buyback Plan
• Positive Sentiment: The company reiterated a long-term revenue target for Lazard Capital and outlined productivity goals, including higher revenue per managing director, suggesting management is focused on improving margins. Lazard targets $10m per MD by 2028 as it reiterates $500m Lazard CL 2027 revenue plan
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Peter Orszag said AI should make future deal teams “leaner,” reinforcing the firm’s cost-efficiency push, but the impact on near-term results is still uncertain. Lazard CEO Orszag: AI will lead to ‘leaner’ deal teams with more MDs
• Neutral Sentiment: Lazard declared a quarterly dividend, which may appeal to income investors, but it is not a major fresh catalyst for the stock. Lazard earnings report and conference call
• Negative Sentiment: Q2 earnings missed expectations, with EPS of $0.12 versus estimates around $0.34-$0.42, reflecting pressure from weaker Financial Advisory revenue and higher expenses. Lazard (LAZ) Q2 Earnings Miss Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Profit fell sharply year over year, with reports pointing to a 91% decline in quarterly profit due to a higher tax rate and volatility in the advisory business, which likely weighed on sentiment. Lazard profit plunges on elevated tax rate, financial advisory volatility
• Negative Sentiment: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut its price target on LAZ to $42 and kept a market-perform rating, signaling limited near-term upside. Benzinga report on Lazard price target cut

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.