Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) Announces $0.50 Quarterly Dividend

Lazard, Inc. (NYSE:LAZ) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th will be given a dividend of 0.50 per share by the asset manager on Friday, May 22nd. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 11th.

Lazard has increased its dividend payment by an average of 0.0%per year over the last three years. Lazard has a payout ratio of 53.5% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Lazard to earn $4.94 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 40.5%.

Lazard Price Performance

Lazard stock opened at $45.00 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a current ratio of 2.28. Lazard has a one year low of $38.67 and a one year high of $58.75. The company has a market cap of $5.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 1.42. The business has a fifty day moving average of $45.25 and a two-hundred day moving average of $48.97.

Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 1st. The asset manager reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.52 by ($0.10). Lazard had a net margin of 7.49% and a return on equity of 33.04%. Lazard’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.56 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Lazard will post 3.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on LAZ shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Lazard from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 14th. UBS Group decreased their target price on Lazard from $48.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Citizens Jmp dropped their price target on Lazard from $65.00 to $60.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Lazard in a research report on Monday, January 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $65.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Lazard from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $52.50.

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.