Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. Buys Shares of 119,218 Lazard, Inc. $LAZ

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 119,218 shares of the asset manager’s stock, valued at approximately $6,292,000. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. owned approximately 0.11% of Lazard as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of LAZ. Teza Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lazard by 2.4% in the 2nd quarter. Teza Capital Management LLC now owns 8,059 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $387,000 after buying an additional 187 shares during the period. Lesa Sroufe & Co boosted its holdings in Lazard by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Lesa Sroufe & Co now owns 52,836 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,789,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares during the period. AMG National Trust Bank grew its position in Lazard by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 44,214 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,334,000 after acquiring an additional 267 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its position in Lazard by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 23,007 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,214,000 after acquiring an additional 281 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Great Lakes Retirement Inc. increased its stake in Lazard by 1.7% during the third quarter. Great Lakes Retirement Inc. now owns 22,583 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,192,000 after purchasing an additional 388 shares during the period. 54.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lazard Stock Performance

Shares of LAZ opened at $39.86 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $50.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $50.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a current ratio of 2.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.45 billion, a PE ratio of 18.28, a PEG ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 1.40. Lazard, Inc. has a 1 year low of $31.97 and a 1 year high of $58.75.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The asset manager reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $892.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $876.32 million. Lazard had a return on equity of 33.04% and a net margin of 7.49%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.78 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Lazard, Inc. will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lazard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 9th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 9th. Lazard’s payout ratio is 91.74%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LAZ has been the topic of several research reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Lazard from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 14th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Lazard from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Lazard in a research note on Monday, January 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $65.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Lazard in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Lazard from $61.00 to $59.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $55.75.

Insider Activity at Lazard

In other Lazard news, CEO Peter Richard Orszag sold 69,170 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.76, for a total value of $2,819,369.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 210,942 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,597,995.92. This represents a 24.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 3.86% of the company’s stock.

About Lazard

Lazard Ltd. (NYSE: LAZ) is a leading global financial advisory and asset management firm, offering a comprehensive suite of services to corporations, governments and individuals. Founded in 1848, Lazard has built a reputation for providing independent advice and innovative solutions in complex financial transactions. The firm is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol LAZ and maintains its headquarters in Hamilton, Bermuda.

In its Financial Advisory segment, Lazard assists clients with mergers and acquisitions, restructurings, capital structure optimization and strategic planning.