Lazard Ltd. Profit Misses Analysts’ Estimates
Bermuda-based Lazard Ltd. reported first-quarter profit that missed analysts’ estimates as revenue declined.
Net income fell 40 percent to $15.4 million, or 12 cents a share, from $25.6 million, or 20 cents, a year earlier, the company saidon Friday [Apr. 26]y in a statement. Adjusted earnings, which exclude some items, were 28 cents a share, compared with the 31-cent average estimate of 11 analysts surveyed by the Bloomberg financial news service.
Lazard CEO Ken Jacobs told investors in February that the next few months will determine whether a shift in corporate sentiment leads to an upturn in dealmaking amid improving valuations and available financing.
Global merger-and-acquisition volume declined 1.5 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, following a year in which total dollar volume dropped for the first time since 2009, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
“Our first-quarter results reflect the uneven pace of the M&A markets,” Mr. Jacobs said in the statement.
