Lazard, Inc. $LAZ Shares Sold by Freemont Management S.A.

Freemont Management S.A. reduced its stake in Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) by 62.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 39,105 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 63,695 shares during the period. Lazard makes up about 1.0% of Freemont Management S.A.’s holdings, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Freemont Management S.A.’s holdings in Lazard were worth $2,064,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Lazard during the 3rd quarter worth about $167,000. Leuthold Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lazard during the third quarter worth approximately $295,000. Costello Asset Management INC acquired a new stake in Lazard in the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Alps Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Lazard in the third quarter worth approximately $4,744,000. Finally, Ranger Investment Management L.P. grew its holdings in Lazard by 15.7% during the 3rd quarter. Ranger Investment Management L.P. now owns 584,890 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $30,870,000 after acquiring an additional 79,505 shares in the last quarter. 54.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lazard Stock Performance

Shares of LAZ stock opened at $51.83 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $51.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $52.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 2.58 and a current ratio of 2.58. Lazard, Inc. has a 1 year low of $31.97 and a 1 year high of $58.75. The firm has a market cap of $5.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.77, a PEG ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.38.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The asset manager reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $892.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $876.32 million. Lazard had a return on equity of 34.54% and a net margin of 7.49%.The business’s revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.78 EPS. Analysts predict that Lazard, Inc. will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Lazard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 9th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 9th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 91.74%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on LAZ. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Lazard from $59.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Lazard in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of Lazard in a research report on Friday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $46.00 price objective on Lazard and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on Lazard in a research report on Monday, January 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $65.00 target price on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $57.13.

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.