Point72 Asset Management L.P. Takes $8.43 Million Position in Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ)

Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 167,331 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $8,430,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. owned 0.15% of Lazard as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its position in shares of Lazard by 1,125.0% during the 2nd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 735 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 675 shares during the period. Continuum Advisory LLC lifted its stake in Lazard by 58.9% during the 2nd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 890 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 330 shares in the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Lazard during the 3rd quarter worth $50,000. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in Lazard in the 2nd quarter worth about $87,000. Finally, LWM Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Lazard in the second quarter valued at approximately $88,000. 54.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Lazard Price Performance

NYSE:LAZ traded up $0.90 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $56.72. 815,287 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 680,232. The business's 50-day moving average price is $53.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $47.48. The company has a quick ratio of 2.24, a current ratio of 2.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.72. The company has a market cap of $6.40 billion, a PE ratio of 22.60 and a beta of 1.38. Lazard, Inc. has a 12-month low of $30.99 and a 12-month high of $61.14.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The asset manager reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.41 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $646.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $644.22 million. Lazard had a return on equity of 42.20% and a net margin of 8.28%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 21.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.10 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Lazard, Inc. will post 2.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. Lazard's dividend payout ratio is currently 79.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Lazard from $59.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Lazard in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $51.00 price objective on the stock. JMP Securities upped their price objective on shares of Lazard from $55.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lazard from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Lazard from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Lazard has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $53.00.

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.