Zacks Research Has Optimistic Outlook of Lazard Q1 Earnings

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) – Analysts at Zacks Research raised their Q1 2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Lazard in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, November 13th. Zacks Research analyst Team now forecasts that the asset manager will post earnings per share of $0.91 for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $0.82. Zacks Research has a “Hold” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Lazard’s current full-year earnings is $4.24 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Lazard’s Q2 2026 earnings at $0.78 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $0.94 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $1.04 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $3.68 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $1.39 EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at $1.39 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $1.38 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $5.26 EPS.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on LAZ. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Lazard in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Lazard from $47.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 8th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Lazard in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $56.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Lazard from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $46.00 target price on Lazard and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $55.00.

Lazard Stock Up 0.5%

Lazard stock traded up $0.27 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $50.35. 46,480 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,027,776. The company has a market cap of $5.68 billion, a PE ratio of 19.84 and a beta of 1.38. Lazard has a fifty-two week low of $31.97 and a fifty-two week high of $60.13. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $51.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $49.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 2.58 and a quick ratio of 2.53.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The asset manager reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.17. Lazard had a return on equity of 35.02% and a net margin of 8.89%.The company had revenue of $782.43 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $739.91 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.38 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year.

Lazard Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 3rd. Lazard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 79.05%.

Insider Transactions at Lazard

In related news, CEO Peter Richard Orszag sold 32,475 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.09, for a total transaction of $1,756,572.75. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 183,274 shares in the company, valued at $9,913,290.66. This trade represents a 15.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Michael Gathy sold 617 shares of Lazard stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.37, for a total transaction of $34,163.29. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 108,092 shares of company stock worth $6,030,986. 3.86% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Lazard

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LAZ. Ossiam acquired a new position in shares of Lazard in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,507,000. Caption Management LLC acquired a new stake in Lazard during the third quarter worth about $628,000. Sei Investments Co. lifted its holdings in Lazard by 10.4% in the third quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 70,478 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $3,720,000 after acquiring an additional 6,641 shares during the last quarter. BOKF NA boosted its stake in Lazard by 3.8% in the third quarter. BOKF NA now owns 220,443 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $11,635,000 after acquiring an additional 8,161 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in Lazard by 24.6% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 10,018 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $529,000 after acquiring an additional 1,979 shares during the period. 54.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.