Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) Price Target Lowered to $48.00 at UBS Group

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) had its price objective reduced by UBS Group from $59.00 to $48.00 in a research report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the asset manager’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also commented on LAZ. Wall Street Zen raised Lazard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Lazard from $61.00 to $59.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Lazard from $53.00 to $46.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Lazard from $59.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Lazard in a report on Friday, January 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $55.75.

Lazard Stock Down 8.1%

Shares of NYSE:LAZ opened at $40.56 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $51.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $51.49. 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 company has a market capitalization of $4.53 billion, a PE ratio of 18.61, a PEG ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.40. Lazard has a 52 week low of $31.97 and a 52 week high of $58.75.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The asset manager reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.12. Lazard had a net margin of 7.49% and a return on equity of 33.04%. The business had revenue of $892.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $876.32 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.78 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Lazard will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The company 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. 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 4.9%. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio is 91.74%.

Institutional Trading of Lazard

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lazard by 131.8% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 12,563 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $544,000 after acquiring an additional 7,144 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in Lazard by 27.5% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 759,867 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $32,902,000 after purchasing an additional 163,983 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in Lazard by 8.4% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 238,288 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $10,318,000 after purchasing an additional 18,444 shares during the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its stake in Lazard by 350.0% in the second quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 63,652 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $3,054,000 after purchasing an additional 49,507 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in Lazard by 35.3% in the second quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,057 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $147,000 after purchasing an additional 798 shares in the last quarter. 54.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lazard Company Profile

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.