FY2024 Earnings Forecast for Lazard Issued By Zacks Research

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) – Analysts at Zacks Research dropped their FY2024 earnings per share estimates for shares of Lazard in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, November 21st. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the asset manager will earn $2.30 per share for the year, down from their prior estimate of $2.41. The consensus estimate for Lazard’s current full-year earnings is $2.27 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Lazard’s Q1 2025 earnings at $0.83 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $1.51 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $4.26 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $1.56 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $5.95 EPS.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last issued 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). The company had revenue of $646.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $644.22 million. Lazard had a net margin of 8.28% and a return on equity of 42.20%. The company’s revenue was up 21.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.10 earnings per share.

A number of other research firms have also commented on LAZ. StockNews.com lowered Lazard from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. UBS Group increased their target price on Lazard from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on Lazard in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $51.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Lazard from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Lazard from $59.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $53.00.

Lazard Trading Down 2.5 %

Shares of LAZ stock opened at $58.16 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $52.71 and a 200 day moving average of $46.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.56 billion, a PE ratio of 23.78 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.72, a current ratio of 2.24 and a quick ratio of 2.24. Lazard has a 1-year low of $27.30 and a 1-year high of $61.14.

Institutional Trading of Lazard

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Redwood Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Lazard during the 1st quarter valued at $1,504,000. Interval Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Lazard in the 2nd quarter worth $1,626,000. Swedbank AB purchased a new position in shares of Lazard in the 1st quarter worth $6,733,000. Point72 Europe London LLP purchased a new position in shares of Lazard in the 2nd quarter worth $1,779,000. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System purchased a new position in shares of Lazard in the 2nd quarter worth $934,000. 54.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lazard

In other Lazard news, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 87,770 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.08, for a total transaction of $4,219,981.60. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 1,553,225 shares in the company, valued at approximately $74,679,058. This trade represents a 5.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 3.86% of the company’s stock.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.44%. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio is 79.68%.

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.