Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) Stock Price Expected to Rise, UBS Group Analyst Says

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ - Get Free Report) had its target price lifted by equities research analysts at UBS Group from $50.00 to $54.00 in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "neutral" rating on the asset manager's stock. UBS Group's price target points to a potential downside of 1.04% from the company's previous close.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Lazard from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wolfe Research cut Lazard from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Lazard from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Lazard from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com raised Lazard from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lazard has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $55.33.

Lazard Stock Performance

Shares of LAZ traded up $0.84 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $54.57. 468,046 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,044,838. The company has a quick ratio of 2.24, a current ratio of 2.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.72. Lazard has a 52 week low of $35.56 and a 52 week high of $61.14. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $52.49 and its 200-day simple moving average is $51.08. The firm has a market cap of $6.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.51 and a beta of 1.41.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $0.78 earnings per share 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%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Lazard will post 3.9 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Lazard

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in Lazard by 0.8% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Lazard by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC now owns 9,790 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $504,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the period. Great Lakes Retirement Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Lazard by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Great Lakes Retirement Inc. now owns 18,981 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $977,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares in the last quarter. O Brien Greene & Co. Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Lazard by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. O Brien Greene & Co. Inc now owns 27,000 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,390,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in Lazard by 28.0% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,298 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $118,000 after purchasing an additional 503 shares during the period. 54.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.