Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) Trading Down 8.8% – Should You Sell?

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) was down 8.8% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $44.72 and last traded at $44.44. Approximately 316,253 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 69% from the average daily volume of 1,008,019 shares. The stock had previously closed at $48.73.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on LAZ. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective 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 increased their price objective on Lazard from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lazard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Lazard from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on Lazard from $51.00 to $44.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $55.33.

Lazard Price Performance

The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $51.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $51.92. 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 company has a market cap of $5.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.45 and a beta of 1.41.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 75.19%.

Insider Activity at Lazard

In other Lazard news, CEO Evan L. Russo sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.32, for a total value of $1,383,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 163,448 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,041,943.36. This trade represents a 13.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 3.86% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Lazard

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LAZ. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Lazard by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,788,512 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $555,393,000 after purchasing an additional 81,559 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its position in shares of Lazard by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 4,429,776 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $228,045,000 after buying an additional 240,938 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Lazard by 26.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,297,249 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $118,294,000 after buying an additional 483,696 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Lazard by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,250,049 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $113,357,000 after acquiring an additional 206,295 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp raised its stake in Lazard by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,948,167 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $98,149,000 after acquiring an additional 55,469 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 54.80% of the company’s stock.

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.