Legg Mason, Inc.

Legg Mason, Inc. (LM - Analyst Report) is surging ahead of its Q3 results set to be delivered on Oct 22, helped by rising estimates and a financial sector recovery.

Company Description

Legg Mason, Inc. operates as an asset management firm servicing both individual and institutional investors. The company was founded in 1899 and has a market cap of $4.71 billion.

Shares of Leg Mason are up huge over the last 6 months as the financial sector heals and investors regain their confidence. The company's better than expected second-quarter results, reported on July 21, help provide shares with a nice boost.

Second-Quarter Results

Revenue took a hit, down to $613 million from $1.1 billion last year. But earnings came in better than expected at 35 cents per share, 14 cents ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate.

The company noted that its assets under management, a key financial sector metric, were up 4% from the previous quarter to $656.9 million. Legg Mason also added that its cash position was up to $1.6 billion with total debt coming in at $3 billion.

Estimates Climb

Estimates continue to climb as optimism builds, with the current year adding 22 cents in the last 90 days to $1.23 per share. The next-year estimate is pegged at $1.54, a 25% growth projection.

Valuation

Based on the current-year estimate, this stock has a P/E multiple of 26X, a premium to the overall market.

The Chart

Shares of LM are up more than 100% since bottoming out in early March, take a look below.

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