Nuveen Asset Management LLC Reduces Holdings in Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) by 0.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 271,794 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 236 shares during the quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned 0.24% of Lazard worth $13,992,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new stake in Lazard during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Lazard in the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Lazard by 54.3% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 977 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 344 shares during the period. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Lazard in the 4th quarter worth approximately $53,000. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC lifted its holdings in Lazard by 85.8% in the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 1,137 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 525 shares during the period. 54.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Lazard

In related news, CEO Peter Richard Orszag sold 64,539 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.56, for a total transaction of $2,940,396.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 170,285 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,758,184.60. This trade represents a 27.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 3.86% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Lazard Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:LAZ opened at $42.99 on Monday. Lazard, Inc. has a 52-week low of $31.97 and a 52-week high of $61.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.16 and a beta of 1.28. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $40.82 and a 200-day moving average price of $48.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 2.24 and a current ratio of 2.24.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The asset manager reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.27. Lazard had a return on equity of 44.58% and a net margin of 8.98%. The firm had revenue of $669.16 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $698.39 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.66 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 15.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Lazard, Inc. will post 4.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Monday, May 5th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 5th. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.69%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on LAZ shares. UBS Group increased their price objective on Lazard from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of Lazard in a report on Monday, April 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Lazard from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Morgan Stanley cut Lazard from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $56.00 to $33.00 in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Lazard from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $44.33.

Lazard 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.