Lazard, Inc. (LAZ) to Distribute Quarterly Dividend of $0.50 on August 14th

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, July 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 3rd will be paid a dividend of 0.50 per share by the asset manager on Friday, August 14th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 3rd.

Lazard has increased its dividend by an average of 0.0%per year over the last three years. Lazard has a dividend payout ratio of 53.5% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Lazard to earn $4.32 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.00 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 46.3%.

Lazard Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of NYSE:LAZ opened at $43.01 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $44.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $46.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 3.51 and a current ratio of 3.51. Lazard has a 1-year low of $38.67 and a 1-year high of $58.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.43.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The asset manager reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.34 by ($0.22). Lazard had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 29.30%. The business had revenue of $786.02 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $736.29 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.52 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Lazard will post 2.63 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LAZ has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on shares of Lazard from $49.00 to $44.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 10th. Weiss Ratings raised Lazard from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Argus dropped their price target on Lazard from $63.00 to $52.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Citigroup reissued a “market outperform” rating on shares of Lazard in a report on Friday. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Lazard from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Four equities research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lazard has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $51.00.

Lazard Company Profile

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.