Strategic Financial Concepts LLC Buys New Position in Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ)

Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 10,296 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $530,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Berbice Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Lazard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $46,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Lazard during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $50,000. Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new stake in Lazard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $53,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Lazard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $60,000. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Lazard by 209.0% during the 4th quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,267 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $65,000 after buying an additional 857 shares in the last quarter. 54.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Evan L. Russo sold 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.32, for a total transaction of $1,383,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 163,448 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,041,943.36. This trade represents a 13.27 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 3.86% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Wolfe Research downgraded Lazard from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. StockNews.com raised Lazard from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Lazard from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. JMP Securities upped their price objective on Lazard from $55.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Lazard from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $55.33.

Lazard Trading Down 4.7 %

Shares of LAZ stock traded down $2.43 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $49.60. The company had a trading volume of 479,115 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,016,247. The company has a 50 day moving average of $52.03 and a 200 day moving average of $51.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.72, a current ratio of 2.24 and a quick ratio of 2.24. The firm has a market cap of $5.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.62 and a beta of 1.41. Lazard, Inc. has a 1-year low of $35.56 and a 1-year high of $61.14.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Lazard, Inc. will post 4.24 EPS for the current year.

Lazard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.03%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. Lazard's payout ratio is presently 75.19%.

About Lazard

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.