Lazard reported third-quarter net revenue of $814 million, up 9% from $748 million a year earlier, while adjusted net revenue rose 11% to $805 million from $725 million.
Net income fell to $29 million, or $0.26 a diluted share, from $71 million, or $0.65 a share, in the prior-year quarter. Adjusted net income declined to $40 million, or $0.36 a share, from $62 million, or $0.56 a share.
For the first nine months of 2026, net revenue increased 8% to $2.378 billion from $2.192 billion, while adjusted net revenue rose 6% to $2.264 billion from $2.138 billion. Nine-month net income dropped to $135 million, or $1.20 a share, from $187 million, or $1.72 a share; adjusted net income fell to $100 million, or $0.90 a share, from $178 million, or $1.64 a share.
Financial advisory revenue reached a third-quarter record of $470 million on a GAAP basis, up 10% from $427 million, and $465 million on an adjusted basis, also up 10% from $422 million. For the nine-month period, financial advisory revenue slipped 1% to $1.279 billion on a GAAP basis and $1.266 billion on an adjusted basis, from $1.292 billion and $1.283 billion, respectively.
Asset management revenue climbed to $357 million in the third quarter from $327 million, a 9% increase, while adjusted asset management revenue rose 12% to $330 million from $294 million. For the first nine months, asset management revenue jumped 23% to $1.118 billion from $908 million on a GAAP basis, and 17% to $970 million from $827 million on an adjusted basis.
Average assets under management were $287 billion in the third quarter, up 11% from $257 billion a year earlier and 3% from $279 billion in the second quarter. Ending assets under management were $284 billion at Sept. 30, 2026, up 7% from $265 billion a year earlier and essentially unchanged from June 30. For the first nine months, average AUM rose to $277 billion from $242 billion, and the firm posted $5.1 billion of positive net flows.
Compensation and benefits expense rose to $569 million from $498 million in the third quarter, while adjusted compensation and benefits expense increased to $562 million from $475 million. The adjusted compensation ratio increased to 69.9% from 65.5%.
Non-compensation expenses rose to $190 million from $174 million on a GAAP basis, and to $156 million from $149 million on an adjusted basis. The adjusted non-compensation ratio improved to 19.3% from 20.5%.
Lazard returned $88 million to shareholders in the quarter, including $49 million in dividends and $33 million in share repurchases. In the first nine months, it returned $366 million, including $145 million in dividends and $85 million in repurchases. The company repurchased 1.9 million shares at an average price of $43.68 during the period.
Cash and cash equivalents stood at $1.264 billion at Sept. 30, 2026, and the board declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 a share. Following these announcements, the company's shares moved 1.91%, and are now trading at a price of $37.37. If you want to know more, read the company's complete 8-K report here.
