Lazard defied a weak merger market in the second quarter, reporting an 81 percent rise in profit.
The investment bank said Thursday that its adjusted profit rose to $60 million in the quarter from $33 million in the period a year earlier. The earnings of 45 cents a share blew past the average analyst estimate of 34 cents a share, according to Standard & Poor's Capital IQ.
Using generally accepted accounting principles, Lazard reported profit of $31 million, flat from the period last year.
The results showed the early effects of a cost-saving plan that has exceeded its goal, Lazard said Thursday. Announced in October, the plan is now expected to achieve annual cost savings of about $160 million.
Lazard, an independent firm, also showed its deal-making prowess. Despite a broad slump in deal activity, Lazard reported growth in its core financial advisory business, with operating revenue increasing 9 percent in the quarter to $263 million.
Revenue from advising on mergers and other deals drove the growth in that segment, while the firm's restructuring business reported a decline in revenue for the quarter.
Over all, Lazard's operating revenue increased to $511 million from $455 million in the second quarter of 2012.
“Lazard continues to perform well in challenging global market conditions,†Kenneth M. Jacobs, the firm's chairman and chief executive, said in a statement.
The investment bank had a hand in some of the biggest deals of recent months. It advised Deutsche Telekom on the $29 billion merger of T-Mobile and MetroPCS, and it advised Berkshire Hathaway and 3G Capital in their $28 billion acquisition of H.J. Heinz, which closed in the second quarter.
Lazard also showed strength in its asset management business. Operating revenue for that segment rose 18 percent to $243 million in the quarter, the firm said.
The cost savings that Lazard expects to achieve include $120 million related to compensation expenses and about $40 million of other expenses. Those areas have been a focus of investors like Nelson Peltz, who has urged greater discipline.
The firm's adjusted profit in the second quarter excluded a pretax charge of $38 million related to the completion of the cost saving efforts.
Lazard has recently been able to attract senior talent from other firms, including Larry Slaughter, a former JPMorgan Chase deal maker who was hired in May. A restructuring expert at Goldman Sachs, Lachlan Edwards, is reported to be headed to Lazard in October to run the bank's capital structure advisory business in Australia.
