XTX Topco Ltd Takes $1.40 Million Position in Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ)

XTX Topco Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 27,777 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $1,399,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. 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 valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Lazard by 58.9% during the 2nd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 890 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 330 shares during the period. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lazard in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $50,000. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lazard in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $87,000. Finally, LWM Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Lazard during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $88,000. 54.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lazard Price Performance

LAZ traded down $2.06 during trading on Monday, reaching $54.66. The stock had a trading volume of 772,772 shares, compared to its average volume of 929,992. Lazard, Inc. has a 1-year low of $31.77 and a 1-year high of $61.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.78 and a beta of 1.38. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $54.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $47.58. 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 (NYSE:LAZ - Get Free Report) last announced its 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). Lazard had a net margin of 8.28% and a return on equity of 42.20%. The firm had revenue of $646.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $644.22 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.10 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 21.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Lazard, Inc. will post 2.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.66%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. Lazard's dividend payout ratio is presently 79.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on LAZ. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lazard from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Morgan Stanley cut shares of Lazard from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $60.00 to $63.00 in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Lazard in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $51.00 price target on the stock. JMP Securities increased 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, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Lazard from $59.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Lazard presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $53.43.

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.