What is Zacks Research's Estimate for Lazard Q4 Earnings?

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ - Free Report) - Investment analysts at Zacks Research dropped their Q4 2024 earnings estimates for shares of Lazard in a report released on Wednesday, January 29th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the asset manager will post earnings of $0.40 per share for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $0.62. The consensus estimate for Lazard's current full-year earnings is $3.90 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Lazard's Q2 2025 earnings at $0.75 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $1.41 EPS and Q1 2026 earnings at $1.27 EPS.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.09. Lazard had a return on equity of 44.58% and a net margin of 8.98%.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on LAZ. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Lazard from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Lazard from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Lazard from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. StockNews.com raised Lazard from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Lazard from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lazard presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $55.33.

Lazard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LAZ traded up $0.84 during trading on Monday, reaching $54.57. 568,774 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,052,924. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.15 billion, a PE ratio of 20.51 and a beta of 1.41. Lazard has a 52 week low of $35.56 and a 52 week high of $61.14. 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's 50 day moving average is $52.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $51.08.

Institutional Trading of Lazard

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Inceptionr LLC grew its holdings in Lazard by 15.9% during the 4th quarter. Inceptionr LLC now owns 13,675 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $704,000 after acquiring an additional 1,876 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Lazard during the fourth quarter worth $2,285,000. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its holdings in Lazard by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 26,169 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,347,000 after buying an additional 196 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Lazard by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,156,749 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $59,549,000 after acquiring an additional 92,318 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Keybank National Association OH grew its holdings in Lazard by 14.3% during the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 6,406 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $330,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares during the period. 54.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.67%. Lazard's payout ratio is presently 75.19%.

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.