Peter Richard Orszag Sells 69,170 Shares of Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) Stock

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) CEO Peter Richard Orszag sold 69,170 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.76, for a total value of $2,819,369.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 210,942 shares in the company, valued at $8,597,995.92. This represents a 24.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Lazard Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of LAZ opened at $39.86 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $4.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.28, a PEG ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 1.40. Lazard, Inc. has a 12 month low of $31.97 and a 12 month high of $58.75. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $50.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $50.89. The company has a current ratio of 2.28, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The asset manager reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $876.32 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.78 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Lazard, Inc. will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lazard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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 was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.0%. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 91.74%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on LAZ shares. Citigroup reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of Lazard in a report on Friday, January 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Lazard from $59.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Lazard from $59.00 to $48.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on Lazard from $53.00 to $46.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Lazard from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lazard currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $55.75.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lazard

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Lazard in the fourth quarter valued at about $80,169,000. M&T Bank Corp boosted its position in Lazard by 2,763.4% during the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,405,899 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $68,270,000 after acquiring an additional 1,356,800 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in Lazard by 13.5% during the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Lazard during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,305,000. Finally, Algebris UK Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Lazard in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $24,424,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.80% of the company’s stock.

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.