Royal Mail To Go Public (advised By Lazard

Royal Mail to go public (advised by Lazard

The British package service Royal mail was available to private investors last week, they are being advised through this process by Lazard Ltd. (NYSE: LAZ). Lazard is a financial advisory founded in 1848 with noted leaders like CEO Kenneth Jacobs. Seeing a wave of investors jumping on a chance to invest, placing orders for far more shares than being offered. They are making their full public offering on October 11th, individuals interested in investing can apply for shared but the offer is expected to close on October 8th. Positives for investing Royal Mail is well placed for growth from online shopping. Leading provider of postal services in the UK Royal mail has been restructuring to be more efficient since 2008 Negatives of investing Letter volume continues to decline as digital press increases. Disputes with trade union could disrupt national distribution Performance is effected by macroeconomic trends Has an aging IT infrastructure.

http://aclassasset.blogspot.com/2013/10/royal-mail-goes-public-as-advised-by.html

Lazard hits a 52 week high

by Zacks Equity Research

November 19, 2013

Shares of Lazard Ltd. reached a new 52-week high, touching $41.66 at the second half of the trading session on Nov 18. However, the stock closed the session at $41.26, which reflects a solid year-to-date return of 34.7%.The trading volume for the session was 0.5 million shares. Despite the strong price appreciation, this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) stock has plenty of upside left, given its strong estimate revisions over the last 30 days and expected long-term earnings growth of 12.0%. Growth Drivers Impressive third-quarter 2013 results comprising a positive earnings surprise of 31.64%, top-line growth, a strong capital position and higher assets under management (AUM) were the primary driving factors for Lazard. On Oct 24, Lazard reported third-quarter 2013 adjusted earnings of 46 cents per share, outpacing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 35 cents. Moreover, this compared favorably with 26 cents earned in the prior-year quarter. On a year-over-year basis, Lazard experienced 10.0% rise in both revenues and AUM, which acted as positives for the quarter. AUM growth resulted from market appreciation and rise in net inflows. Additionally, the company’s capital ratios depict its strong position. However, a 4.3% increase in expenses was the headwind for the quarter. Further, Lazard has delivered positive earnings surprises in 3 out of the last 4 quarters with an average beat of 35.95%. Estimate Revisions Show Potency Over the last 30 days, 3 out of 7 estimates for 2013 have been revised upward, lifting the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 4.7% to $1.77 per share. For 2014, 4 out of 7 estimates moved north, helping the Zacks Consensus Estimate advance 6.1% to $2.44 per share.

Want Better Hedge Fund Returns? Try One Led by a Woman

DealBook, January 15th, 2014

By William Alden

In the world of hedge funds, a relative few have a woman at the helm. And yet, these funds may be the standouts from the bunch, a new report argues.

In the years since the financial crisis, hedge funds managed by women performed better than a broader index that reflects the performance of the industry, according to a report released on Wednesday by the professional services firm Rothstein Kass. The report seeks to show that this “alpha” – superior returns, in Wall Street speak – is no mere fluke.

“There is meaningful alpha to be gained from investing in women-owned and -managed funds,” Meredith Jones, a director at Rothstein Kass who wrote the report, said in an interview. “There appear to be both behavioral and biological factors that impact women’s ability to manage money and make them consistent.”

From the beginning of 2007 through June 2013 – a period that includes the dark days of the crisis – a Rothstein Kass index of women-run hedge funds returned 6 percent, the report says. By comparison, the HFRX Global Hedge Fund Index, released by Hedge Fund Research, fell 1.1 percent during that time, according to the report.

Last year through November, the index of women-run funds had a 9.8 percent return, compared with a 6.13 percent rise in the broader index, the research showed. (Still, both indexes fell short of the Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index, which rose about 27 percent during that time.)

The report, titled “Women in Alternative Investments: A Marathon, Not a Sprint,” used a group of 82 hedge funds managed or owned by women. Last year, the firm said that female hedge fund managers produced a return of 8.95 percent through the third quarter of 2012, compared with a 2.69 percent net return for the broader index.

While highlighting the accomplishments of women in hedge funds, private equity and venture capital, this year’s report also draws attention to persistent gender disparities on Wall Street.

The research, based on a survey in September and October of 440 senior women in the alternative investments business, suggests that the vast majority of the top jobs are held by men. Of the women surveyed, only 15.5 percent said their firm was owned or managed by a woman. Among hedge funds in particular, 21.4 percent were owned or managed by women.

About 42 percent of the respondents said their firm had no general partners who were women. And nearly 40 percent of the firms included in the survey had no women on their investment committees.

In that context, hedge funds run by women remain something of a niche. Some institutional investors, like public pension funds, have a specific mandate to invest a portion of their money in funds run by women or minorities.

Though these mandates can be motivated by political factors, Rothstein Kass is seeking to show that investing with women managers can be a wise choice for purely financial reasons. A handful of studies have suggested that women traders behave differently than their male counterparts, acting less impulsively.

John Coates, a former trader who is now a research fellow in neuroscience at the University of Cambridge, argued in a 2012 book, “The Hour Between Dog and Wolf,” that testosterone contributed to market swings. Hiring more women on trading floors, he wrote, might have a stabilizing effect.

But these ideas are far from mainstream, and the industry has been slow to change. A fourth of investors surveyed by Rothstein Kass said they expected their allocations to women-run funds to increase “somewhat” in 2014, while 2 percent expected to allocate “significantly” more money.

Though the study expected more women to start their own funds in the coming years, the scarcity of such funds is itself an obstacle, a “chicken or the egg” problem, said Kelly Easterling, an audit principal at Rothstein Kass who contributed to the report.

“Without a large supply of funds, it’s difficult to achieve appropriate portfolio diversification or, for that matter, put enough money to work to move the performance dial,” she said in a statement quoted in the report. “On the other hand, until there is more money flowing to women-owned and -managed funds, it’s unlikely that there will be a stampede of new fund launches.”

Royal Mail To Go Public (advised By Lazard