FY2024 Earnings Estimate for Lazard Issued By Zacks Research

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) – Investment analysts at Zacks Research dropped their FY2024 earnings estimates for shares of Lazard in a report released on Tuesday, December 3rd. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the asset manager will earn $2.25 per share for the year, down from their prior forecast of $2.30. The consensus estimate for Lazard’s current full-year earnings is $2.27 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Lazard’s Q4 2024 earnings at $0.69 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $0.80 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $1.09 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $1.35 EPS and Q2 2026 earnings at $1.32 EPS.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The asset manager reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by ($0.03). Lazard had a return on equity of 42.20% and a net margin of 8.28%. The company had revenue of $646.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $644.22 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.10 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 21.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

Several other research firms also recently commented on LAZ. JMP Securities boosted their target price on shares of Lazard from $55.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lazard from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Lazard from $59.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Lazard in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $51.00 target price for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Lazard from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $53.00.

Lazard Stock Down 1.5 %

LAZ stock opened at $55.82 on Thursday. Lazard has a 12-month low of $30.96 and a 12-month high of $61.14. The company has a quick ratio of 2.24, a current ratio of 2.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.72. The company has a market cap of $6.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.24 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a 50 day moving average of $53.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $47.28.

Lazard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.58%. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio is 79.68%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lazard

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Interval Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of Lazard during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,626,000. Point72 Europe London LLP bought a new stake in shares of Lazard during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,779,000. Arizona State Retirement System bought a new stake in shares of Lazard during the second quarter valued at approximately $934,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Lazard by 4.1% during the second quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,043,754 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $78,031,000 after purchasing an additional 79,889 shares during the period. Finally, Amica Mutual Insurance Co. bought a new stake in shares of Lazard during the second quarter valued at approximately $5,700,000. 54.80% of the stock is 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.