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

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 6,560,000 shares, an increase of 14.5% from the January 15th total of 5,730,000 shares. Approximately 7.7% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 923,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 7.1 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on LAZ shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Lazard from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Lazard from $51.00 to $44.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Lazard from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Lazard from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, JMP Securities boosted their price objective on shares of Lazard from $55.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $55.33.

Insider Activity at Lazard

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lazard

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Arizona State Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Lazard by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 26,169 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,347,000 after buying an additional 196 shares in the last quarter. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Lazard by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC now owns 9,790 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $504,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its position in shares of Lazard by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 48,129 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,478,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Great Lakes Retirement Inc. increased its stake in shares of Lazard by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Great Lakes Retirement Inc. now owns 18,981 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $977,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lazard by 54.3% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 977 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 344 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 54.80% of the company’s stock.

Lazard Stock Performance

Shares of LAZ stock opened at $55.23 on Monday. Lazard has a 12 month low of $35.56 and a 12 month high of $61.14. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $52.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $51.46. The firm has a market cap of $6.23 billion, a PE ratio of 20.76 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a quick ratio of 2.24, a current ratio of 2.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.72.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last issued 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 net margin of 8.98% and a return on equity of 44.58%. Equities research analysts expect that Lazard will post 4.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lazard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.62%. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio is 75.19%.

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.