Research Analysts Issue Forecasts for Lazard FY2024 Earnings

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ - Free Report) - Research analysts at Seaport Res Ptn cut their FY2024 earnings estimates for Lazard in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, January 13th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst J. Mitchell now anticipates that the asset manager will post earnings of $2.08 per share for the year, down from their prior estimate of $2.30. The consensus estimate for Lazard's current full-year earnings is $2.18 per share. Seaport Res Ptn also issued estimates for Lazard's Q1 2025 earnings at $0.68 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $0.75 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $1.45 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $3.80 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $4.80 EPS.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on Lazard from $57.00 to $52.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Lazard from $59.00 to $51.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. JMP Securities raised their target price on shares of Lazard from $55.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley cut shares of Lazard from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $60.00 to $63.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Lazard from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $53.17.

Lazard Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of LAZ traded up $1.00 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $46.78. The company had a trading volume of 1,324,701 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,040,920. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $54.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $49.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.64 and a beta of 1.40. Lazard has a 1 year low of $35.56 and a 1 year high of $61.14. 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 - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The asset manager reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.41 by ($0.03). Lazard had a net margin of 8.28% and a return on equity of 42.20%. The company had revenue of $646.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $644.22 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.10 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 21.4% on a year-over-year basis.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.28%. Lazard's dividend payout ratio is presently 79.68%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAZ. Claro Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Lazard by 10,306.7% during the 3rd quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 1,235,793 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $62,259,000 after purchasing an additional 1,223,918 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Lazard by 5,770.1% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,064,431 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $53,626,000 after purchasing an additional 1,046,298 shares during the last quarter. Azora Capital LP purchased a new position in Lazard in the 3rd quarter valued at about $13,560,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Lazard by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,250,049 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $113,357,000 after purchasing an additional 206,295 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Lazard during the third quarter worth about $8,430,000. 54.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.