Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) Given New $59.00 Price Target at JMP Securities

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) had its price objective increased by research analysts at JMP Securities from $55.00 to $59.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “market outperform” rating on the asset manager’s stock. JMP Securities’ price objective suggests a potential upside of 10.59% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms have also commented on LAZ. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lazard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Lazard from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. UBS Group boosted their price objective 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 set an “equal weight” rating and a $51.00 target price for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Lazard from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.71.

Lazard Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:LAZ traded up $0.36 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $53.35. 45,350 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 936,894. Lazard has a 12 month low of $25.82 and a 12 month high of $54.72. The company has a market cap of $6.02 billion, a PE ratio of 35.30 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.60, a current ratio of 1.94 and a quick ratio of 1.94. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $50.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $44.21.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The asset manager reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $646.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $644.22 million. Lazard had a net margin of 5.50% and a return on equity of 41.78%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 21.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.10 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lazard will post 2.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Lazard

In other Lazard news, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 87,770 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.08, for a total value of $4,219,981.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 1,553,225 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $74,679,058. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Lazard news, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 86,728 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.02, for a total transaction of $4,338,134.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 1,640,995 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $82,082,569.90. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Chairman Kenneth M. Jacobs sold 87,770 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.08, for a total transaction of $4,219,981.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 1,553,225 shares in the company, valued at $74,679,058. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 176,497 shares of company stock valued at $8,658,086. Insiders own 3.86% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Lazard

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Continuum Advisory LLC boosted its position in Lazard by 58.9% during 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 in the last quarter. Central Asset Investments & Management Holdings HK Ltd grew its stake in Lazard by 3.3% in the second quarter. Central Asset Investments & Management Holdings HK Ltd now owns 18,392 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $702,000 after purchasing an additional 589 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in Lazard in the first quarter worth $25,000. Great Lakes Retirement Inc. grew its position in shares of Lazard by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Great Lakes Retirement Inc. now owns 18,646 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $939,000 after buying an additional 624 shares during the period. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lazard by 1,125.0% in the 2nd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 735 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 54.80% of the company’s stock.

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.