Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) Price Target Raised to $60.00 at Morgan Stanley

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) had its target price boosted by Morgan Stanley from $56.00 to $60.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the asset manager’s stock.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an outperform rating and issued a $56.00 price objective (up previously from $49.00) on shares of Lazard in a research note on Friday, July 26th. StockNews.com raised Lazard from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Lazard from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a sell rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Lazard in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They set an equal weight rating and a $51.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $49.29.

Lazard Stock Performance

Shares of LAZ opened at $50.15 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $47.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $42.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.60, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 1.94. The stock has a market cap of $5.66 billion, a P/E ratio of -143.29 and a beta of 1.39. Lazard has a one year low of $25.82 and a one year high of $51.46.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The asset manager reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.17. Lazard had a return on equity of 41.78% and a net margin of 5.50%. The firm had revenue of $685.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $625.40 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.24 earnings per share. Lazard’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Lazard will post 2.4 EPS for the current year.

Lazard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Investors of record on Monday, August 5th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.99%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 5th. Lazard’s payout ratio is -571.43%.

Insider Transactions at Lazard

In other news, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 87,770 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.08, for a total value of $4,219,981.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 1,553,225 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $74,679,058. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Lazard news, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 1,999 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.01, for a total transaction of $99,969.99. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 1,727,723 shares in the company, valued at approximately $86,403,427.23. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 87,770 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.08, for a total transaction of $4,219,981.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 1,553,225 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $74,679,058. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 429,604 shares of company stock valued at $19,873,736. Corporate insiders own 3.86% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lazard

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda lifted its position in shares of Lazard by 127.0% during the 2nd quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda now owns 231,452 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $8,837,000 after buying an additional 129,490 shares during the last quarter. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Lazard in the second quarter valued at $955,000. Algert Global LLC acquired a new position in Lazard in the second quarter valued at $336,000. Ascent Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lazard by 22.7% during the second quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 7,585 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $290,000 after purchasing an additional 1,405 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dark Forest Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Lazard during the second quarter worth about $806,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.80% of the company’s stock.

Lazard Company Profile

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.