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

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

Lazard Price Performance

Lazard stock traded up $1.26 during trading on Monday, reaching $55.23. The company had a trading volume of 730,312 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,025,253. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $52.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is $51.46. Lazard has a 1-year low of $35.56 and a 1-year high of $61.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.23 billion, a PE ratio of 20.76 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 2.24 and a current ratio of 2.24.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The asset manager reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.09. Lazard had a net margin of 8.98% and a return on equity of 44.58%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Lazard will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 currently 75.19%.

Insider Activity at Lazard

In related news, CEO Evan L. Russo sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 163,448 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,041,943.36. This trade represents a 13.27 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 3.86% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lazard

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc acquired a new stake in Lazard in the 4th quarter valued at $476,000. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its holdings in Lazard by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 56,288 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,898,000 after purchasing an additional 838 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its holdings in Lazard by 19.5% in the 4th quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 14,144 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $728,000 after purchasing an additional 2,306 shares in the last quarter. Centiva Capital LP purchased a new position in Lazard in the 4th quarter valued at $494,000. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Lazard by 24.5% in the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 10,709 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $551,000 after purchasing an additional 2,109 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on LAZ. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target 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. JMP Securities increased their price target on shares of Lazard from $55.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Wolfe Research cut shares of Lazard from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Lazard from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Lazard from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $55.33.

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.