Lazard (NYSE:LAZ) announces its next round of earnings this Friday, July 30. Here is Benzinga’s look at Lazard’s Q2 earnings report.
Net Income, Earnings, And Earnings Per Share
Earnings and EPS are useful metrics of profitability. Total earnings also known as net income is equal to total revenue minus total expenses. Dividing net income by the total number of shares outstanding yields EPS.
Earnings And Revenue
Sell-side analysts expect Lazard’s EPS to be near $0.88 on sales of $652.31 million. Lazard reported a profit of $0.67 per share when it published results during the same quarter last year. Sales in that period totaled $542.91 million.
Why Analyst Estimates And Earnings Surprises Are Important
Analysts who cover this company will publish forward-looking estimates of its revenue and EPS each quarter. Averaging together every EPS and revenue prediction that each analyst makes about a company in a quarter yields the “consensus estimates.” A company posting earnings or revenue above or below the consensus estimate is known as an “earnings surprise” and may move the stock by a considerable margin.
The Wall Street estimate would represent a 31.34% increase in the company’s earnings. Sales would be up 20.15% on a year-over-year basis. Lazard’s reported EPS has stacked up against analyst estimates in the past like this:
| Quarter | Q1 2021 | Q4 2020 | Q3 2020 | Q2 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EPS Estimate | 0.89 | 0.97 | 0.47 | 0.41 |
| EPS Actual | 0.87 | 1.66 | 0.67 | 0.67 |
| Revenue Estimate | 658.44 M | 686.22 M | 511.64 M | 502.54 M |
| Revenue Actual | 647.86 M | 848.77 M | 569.05 M | 542.91 M |
Want Real-Time Earnings Calendar Updates?
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Stock Performance
Shares of Lazard were trading at $44.44 as of July 28. Over the last 52-week period, shares are up 53.33%. Given that these returns are generally positive, long-term shareholders are probably satisfied going into this earnings release.
Do not be surprised to see the stock move on comments made during its conference call. Lazard is scheduled to hold the call at 08:00:00 ET and can be accessed here.
