Lazard, the New York-based asset management firm, has reported a net income per share of $0.34, on a fully exchanged basis, for the second quarter of 2009 and net income per share of $0.11 for the first half of 2009, on a fully exchanged basis. Operating revenue was $399 million in the second quarter of 2009, compared to $273 million in the first quarter of 2009 and $494 million in the second quarter of 2008.
M&A and Strategic Advisory, Restructuring and Asset Management all contributed to the 46% sequential improvement in operating revenue from first-quarter to second-quarter 2009. M&A revenue up 40% sequentially from the first quarter of 2009. Assets Under Management increased to $98 billion as of June 30, 2009, against $81.1 billion as of March 31, 2009.
Bruce Wasserstein, chairman and CEO of Lazard, said: “We have performed well in these turbulent markets. Although the markets may continue to be erratic and the general economy may lag, we feel ‘it is the end of the beginning’ of the stabilization of the financial sector. We believe there is a need by major corporate leaders to go beyond surviving the downturn and start thinking about future growth.”
“In thinking about the future, we are planning for a gradual increase in traditional M&A activity, reaching the prior period highs in about four years. In addition, new markets such as China, India, Brazil, Australia and Russia are becoming more active. We also are broadening our client base through new hires and initiatives such as Lazard Middle Market and Wealth Management. We also expect the pace of our other advisory activities, including advice to governments and sovereign funds, as well as capital markets advice to major corporates, will continue to increase,” he added.
