Lazard Insights

Oil prices have plummeted in recent months due to slowing global demand, increased North American supply, and Saudi Arabia’s shifting priorities. In the United States, shale oil has been a significant driver of production based on innovation and efficiencies. Nonetheless, lower prices are resulting in sharply lower cash flows, forcing greater capital discipline for oil producers, while consumers enjoy the benefits of cheaper fuel prices. Research Analysts, Peter Hunsberger and Eugene Krishnan, discuss the current state of the oil market and the investment implications in a low oil price world.

Featured Speakers

Peter C. Hunsberger

Managing Director, Research Analyst

Peter Hunsberger is a Managing Director and Research Analyst covering the power sector. He began working in the investment field in 1989. Prior to joining Lazard in 1991, Peter served as Director of Research with John S. Herold, Inc. and was also previously with Hunt Oil Company. He has an MBA from Houston Baptist University and a BA from Middlebury College.

Eugene KrishnanSenior Vice President, Portfolio Manager/AnalystEugene Krishnan is a Senior Vice President and Portfolio Manager/Analyst on the US Small-Mid Cap Equity team. He began working in the investment field in 1998. Eugene rejoined the firm in 2012, after previously serving as a Research Analyst from 2001 to 2009. Prior to joining Lazard in 2001, Eugene co-founded Carpe Diem Innovations, an incubator for Fortune 500 new ventures, and worked as a strategy consultant at PricewaterhouseCoopers. He has a BS in Chemical Engineering from Columbia University.

Interest rates are at levels not experienced since the Great Depression, even though the current economic environment is much stronger today than it was in the 1930s. If the US Federal Reserve maintains its zero-rate policy for too long we believe unintended consequences can spring in the form of asset-price bubbles or inflation. In addition, as bond markets remain expectant to any interest-rate policy decisions, common wisdom and popular ideas are diverging from current reality. Joe Ramos, Portfolio Manager/Analyst on Lazard's US Fixed Income team, discusses the current interest-rate environment and the importance of having the right US fixed income allocation in a portfolio.

Featured Speaker

Eulogio (Joe) Ramos

Managing Director, Portfolio Manager/Analyst

Joe Ramos is a Portfolio Manager/Analyst on the US Fixed Income team. He began working in the investment industry in 1978. Prior to joining Lazard in 2006, Joe was the Chief Investment Officer of Ambac Financial Group, Inc., where he was responsible for the oversight and management of Ambac's balance sheet investment strategies, including the Excess Liquidity, Core Capital, Plus, and levered IA portfolios. Previously, Joe was a member at E.H. Capital Group, LLC, a Senior Vice President and Portfolio Manager at Lazard Asset Management, a First Vice President and Senior Portfolio Manager at Lehman Management Co., and a Senior Analyst in the Lehman Brothers Kuhn Loeb Fixed Income Research Department. He has a BS from New York University. Joe Ramos is a member of the CFA Institute, the NYSSA and the Economic Club of New York.

There has been frequent speculation in the media that we are on the verge of another technology bubble. However, these inclinations are misguided as the environment today is much different than during the dot-com bubble. We believe technology valuations and fundamentals are favorable in comparison to the market as a whole and are nowhere near the extreme activity of the late 1990s and early 2000s. However, the sector is undergoing a paradigm shift in computing platforms toward mobile and cloud technologies, which may warrant higher valuations as this portion of the industry is driving accelerating innovation and disruption. Bret Miller, Research Analyst, discusses the current landscape and the implication of new secular trends in the technology sector.

Featured Speaker

Bret A. Miller, CFA

Senior Vice President, Research Analyst

Bret Miller is a Senior Vice President and Research Analyst covering the technology sector. He began his investment experience upon joining the Firm in 2007. He has a BS in Economics from Duke University.

A cursory review of headline data on the US labor market would indicate that the job market has healed fully since the global financial crisis. However, many of the keenly watched statistics do not address the nuances of the employment situation. We believe it is important to examine long-term trends and demographic developments to obtain a more complete view on the post-crisis job recovery. Our insights regarding employment conditions could prove useful in assessing the US Federal Reserve’s future policy choices, along with the labor implications of those choices, as it strives to satisfy its dual mandate of price stability and maximum employment. Ronald Temple, Portfolio Manager/Analyst on Lazard’s Global Equity Select and US large-cap equity strategies, discusses the US job market’s current landscape and how to interpret this in the context of monetary policy.

Featured Speaker

Ronald Temple, CFA

Managing Director, Co-Head of Multi Asset and Head of US Equity

Ronald Temple is a Managing Director and Co-Head of Multi Asset and Head of US Equity, responsible for oversight of the firm's multi asset and US equity strategies as well as several global equity strategies. He is also a Portfolio Manager/Analyst on various US and global equity teams. Since joining Lazard in 2001, Ron has developed a reputation as an authority on the global financial crisis and the secular changes under way in the global economy. Beyond his day-to-day responsibilities, Ron engages extensively with a wide range of Lazard's investment professionals across the equity and debt arenas to leverage the firm's insight broadly.

Ron's unique perspectives in part arise from his broad range of previous experiences in financial services. Prior to joining Lazard, Ron was a Director and Buy-Side Equity Analyst at Deutsche Bank AG. In a previous role at Deutsche Bank, he oversaw the implementation of merger related synergies on behalf of Deutsche Bank's CEO of the Americas after Deutsche acquired Bankers Trust. During the Asian debt crisis, Ron served as business manager for Deutsche Bank's CEO and Deputy CEO of Asia/Pacific in Singapore, a position in which he supervised the Investment Banking Division and executed on strategic business changes for the Group. He also held a previous role in a global business manager function for Deutsche Bank's foreign exchange business. Ron has had extensive experience developing and enhancing risk management processes at Deutsche Bank, Bank of America NT&SA, and Fleet Financial. Ron began his career trading cash and derivatives in the interest rate and foreign exchange markets at Fleet Financial Group. Ron earned his Master in Public Policy from Harvard University and his Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Public Policy Studies magna cum laude from Duke University. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the Economic Club of New York, Duke University’s Graduate School Board of Visitors and the New York Society of Security Analysts (NYSSA). He also served as a trustee of the Link Community School in Newark, New Jersey, from 2006-2014, as a member of the Trinity Board of Visitors at Duke University from 2006-2012 and a member of the Financial Accounting Standards Advisory Council from 2013 to 2015.

The goal of purchasing assets at a discount is an innate concept in any market system. In the investment world, analysts and market participants are constantly evaluating individual securities and entire asset classes in a search for bargains. By their structure, closed-end funds generally trade at discounts to net asset values—irrespective of the valuation of their underlying individual holdings. As a result, closed-end funds can be a compelling solution for equity exposure in many portfolios. Please join Edward Keating, Client Portfolio Manager on Lazard’s Discounted Assets team, as he discusses the fundamentals and implications of these investments.

Featured Speaker

Edward P. Keating

Client Portfolio Manager

Edward Keating is a Client Portfolio Manager on the Discounted Assets, Global Listed Infrastructure, and Global Equity Franchise teams. He began working in the investment field in 2001, upon joining Lazard. He has a BA from Iona College.

A variety of fixed income investments suffered in 2013 following the Fed’s announcement about winding down its accommodative monetary policy in the United States. The effects of quantitative easing have led investors to re-focus their search for investments that are suitable for the eventual normalization toward higher interest rates. We believe the characteristics of high-yield and convertible bonds make them compelling asset classes for dampening interest-rate risk. Please join Jeffrey Clarke (Lazard’s US High Yield team) and Adam Mitchell (Lazard’s capital structure and convertible strategies team) as they discuss the investment implications of these two fixed income solutions.

Featured Speakers

Jeffrey J. Clarke, CFA

Senior Vice President, Research Analyst

Jeffrey Clarke is a Research Analyst on the US High Yield team. He began working in the investment field in 1999. Prior to joining Lazard in 2002, Jeffrey was a High Yield Research Analyst and Funds Administrator with OFFITBANK, and was also previously with the Bank of New York. He has an MBA from New York University and a BA in Business Administration from Hofstra University.

Adam C. MitchellSenior Vice President, Client Portfolio ManagerAdam Mitchell is a Client Portfolio Manager for Lazard’s Global Fixed Income and all capital structure and convertibles-based strategies. Prior to joining Lazard in 2013, Adam was a Director at Wells Fargo Securities on the Convertible Securities Desk specializing in Hedge Fund coverage. Prior to that, he was a Vice President at both JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs specializing in Hedge Fund coverage within the convertible securities space. Adam began working in the investment field in 2000. He has a MA from Princeton University and a BA with Honors from Rutgers College. He holds FINRA Series 7, 31, and 63 licenses.

A central principle in investment theory claims that it is necessary to undertake risk to obtain return. An asset’s volatility quantifies one key dimension of its risk. Naturally, many tools have been established to help mitigate market volatility. In our recent Investment Research, Dynamic Volatility Targeting, we examined different approaches to stabilize volatility—via derivatives and via asset allocation—highlighting their advantages and drawbacks. Please join Stephen Marra, Portfolio Manager/Analyst on Lazard’s Multi Asset team, as he discusses the investment implications of volatility targeting solutions.

Featured Speaker

Stephen Marra, CFA

Director, Portfolio Manager/Analyst

Stephen Marra is a Director and Portfolio Manager/Analyst on the Lazard Multi Asset team, specializing in strategy research. Prior to joining the Multi Asset investment team, Stephen worked in Settlements, Fixed Income Risk and Quantitative Technology where he helped design and develop Lazard's proprietary trading and risk management systems. He began working in the investment field in 1999 upon joining Lazard. Steve has a BS in Biology from Cornell University.

After several difficult years for European capital markets, we believe the region is showing positive signs toward stabilization. Notably, peripheral countries have made progress in adjusting key macro fundamentals and fixed income markets have experienced diminished volatility. While Europe still faces many challenges, in our view, the environment is tending toward normalization. Please join Christian Eckert, head of Lazard’s European Fixed Income, as he discusses strategic opportunities and investment implications in European markets.

Featured Speaker

Christian A. Eckert

Managing Director, Head of European Fixed Income

Christian Eckert is a Managing Director at Lazard Asset Management LLC and Head of European Fixed Income.

His focus within the investment processes of Credits, High Yield, Rates, Asset Allocation, and Total Return lies on very active management and risk management.

Lazard’s European Fixed Income Investment Team endeavours to exploit a great breadth of international investment opportunities while actively limiting downside risk of client mandates.

Christian began working in the investment field in 1992. Before joining Lazard in 2012, he was CIO Fixed Income with Union Investment and Head of Products with Cominvest. Previously, he spent ten years with ABN AMRO Asset Management as Head of Investment Solutions, CIO European Fixed Income and CEO of ABN AMRO Asset Management in London.

He has a Master in Business and Engineering from TH Darmstadt.