Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,400,000 shares, a growth of 5.6% from the August 15th total of 3,220,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 926,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.7 days. Currently, 4.0% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Lazard Trading Up 1.7 %

LAZ traded up $0.82 on Tuesday, reaching $49.70. 741,883 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 999,489. Lazard has a twelve month low of $25.82 and a twelve month high of $50.26. The company’s 50 day moving average is $46.51 and its 200-day moving average is $41.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.60, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 1.94. The company has a market cap of $5.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -142.00 and a beta of 1.39.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The asset manager reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $685.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $625.40 million. Lazard had a net margin of 5.50% and a return on equity of 41.78%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.24 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Lazard will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Investors of record on Monday, August 5th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 5th. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -571.43%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on LAZ. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an “outperform” rating and set a $56.00 target price (up previously from $49.00) on shares of Lazard in a research report on Friday, July 26th. StockNews.com raised Lazard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Lazard in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $51.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Lazard from $53.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Lazard from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $48.71.

Insider Activity at Lazard

In other news, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 87,770 shares of the company’s 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 owns 1,553,225 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $74,679,058. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 87,770 shares of Lazard stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 1,553,225 shares in the company, valued at $74,679,058. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 207,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.23, for a total value of $9,362,610.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 1,729,722 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $78,235,326.06. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 429,604 shares of company stock worth $19,873,736. Insiders own 3.86% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Lazard

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lazard during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Lazard by 1,125.0% in the second 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 period. Continuum Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Lazard by 58.9% in the 2nd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 890 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 330 shares during the last quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Lazard during the first quarter worth approximately $48,000. Finally, Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lazard during the 2nd quarter worth $87,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.