Wasserstein's Death Sends Lazard Shares Lower

NEW YORK (AP) — Shares of Lazard Ltd. are dropping the morning after the death of CEO Bruce Wasserstein, as investors worry about the investment bank's future without its legendary leader.

"The loss of Mr. Wasserstein will harm Lazard," wrote Richard Bove of Rochdale Securities in a note to investors Thursday. Calling him "the driving force behind the revival of the company," Bove said Wasserstein's "long history of success in the investment banking sector allowed him to build a clientele list that it will be hard for Lazard to maintain."

Still, he maintained his "Buy" rating on the stock, saying the mergers and acquisitions advisory firm will still be a major player in an M&A market that is soon to be "explosive."

Wasserstein has been a marquee name on Wall Street since the 1980s, working on landmark deals such as the Kohlberg Kravis Roberts' takeover of RJR Nabisco, and the Morgan Stanley-Dean Witter and AOL-Time Warner mergers. Most recently he was advising Kraft Foods Inc. on its unsolicited $16.7 billion takeover bid for British candy maker Cadbury PLC.

Fox-Pitt Kelton analyst David Trone said Kraft would likely keep Lazard on board "if for no other reason than the political incorrectness of dismissing them." He said Wasserstein's death would not likely result in a material direct loss of revenue for the firm.