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Side-by-side financial comparison of Lazard, Inc. (LAZ) and MSC INDUSTRIAL DIRECT CO INC (MSM). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
MSC INDUSTRIAL DIRECT CO INC is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($965.7M vs $779.4M, roughly 1.2× Lazard, Inc.). Lazard, Inc. runs the higher net margin — 13.0% vs 5.4%, a 7.6% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, Lazard, Inc. posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (17.0% vs 4.0%). Over the past eight quarters, Lazard, Inc.'s revenue compounded faster (4.9% CAGR vs -3.4%).
Lazard Inc. is an American financial advisory and asset management firm that engages in investment banking, asset management and other financial services, primarily with institutional clients. It is the world's largest independent investment bank, with principal executive offices in New York City, Paris and London.
MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc (MSC), through its subsidiaries, primarily MSC Industrial Supply Co., is one of the largest industrial equipment distributors in the United States, distributing more than 1.5 million metalworking and other industrial products.
LAZ vs MSM — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q1 FY2026 vs Q1 FY2026
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $779.4M | $965.7M |
| Net Profit | $101.0M | $51.8M |
| Gross Margin | — | 40.7% |
| Operating Margin | 11.5% | 7.9% |
| Net Margin | 13.0% | 5.4% |
| Revenue YoY | 17.0% | 4.0% |
| Net Profit YoY | 67.0% | 11.1% |
| EPS (diluted) | $0.91 | $0.93 |
Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.
8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend
Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.
| Q1 26 | $779.4M | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $929.4M | $965.7M | ||
| Q3 25 | $770.8M | $978.2M | ||
| Q2 25 | $817.2M | $971.1M | ||
| Q1 25 | $669.2M | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $839.0M | $928.5M | ||
| Q3 24 | $807.4M | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $708.0M | $979.4M |
| Q1 26 | $101.0M | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $49.9M | $51.8M | ||
| Q3 25 | $71.2M | $56.5M | ||
| Q2 25 | $55.3M | $56.8M | ||
| Q1 25 | $60.4M | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $86.3M | $46.6M | ||
| Q3 24 | $107.9M | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $49.9M | $71.7M |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | — | 40.7% | ||
| Q3 25 | — | 40.4% | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 41.0% | ||
| Q1 25 | — | — | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 40.7% | ||
| Q3 24 | — | — | ||
| Q2 24 | — | 40.9% |
| Q1 26 | 11.5% | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 9.1% | 7.9% | ||
| Q3 25 | 12.3% | 8.6% | ||
| Q2 25 | 11.4% | 8.5% | ||
| Q1 25 | 8.2% | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 12.8% | 7.8% | ||
| Q3 24 | 20.0% | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 9.0% | 10.9% |
| Q1 26 | 13.0% | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 5.4% | 5.4% | ||
| Q3 25 | 9.2% | 5.8% | ||
| Q2 25 | 6.8% | 5.9% | ||
| Q1 25 | 9.0% | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 10.3% | 5.0% | ||
| Q3 24 | 13.4% | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 7.0% | 7.3% |
| Q1 26 | $0.91 | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $0.44 | $0.93 | ||
| Q3 25 | $0.65 | $1.02 | ||
| Q2 25 | $0.52 | $1.02 | ||
| Q1 25 | $0.56 | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $0.82 | $0.83 | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.02 | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $0.49 | $1.27 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | $1.0B | $40.3M |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | — | $214.1M |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $872.5M | $1.4B |
| Total Assets | $4.2B | $2.5B |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | — | 0.16× |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | $1.0B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $1.5B | $40.3M | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.2B | $56.2M | ||
| Q2 25 | $978.3M | $71.7M | ||
| Q1 25 | $908.6M | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.3B | $57.3M | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.2B | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $847.6M | $25.9M |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $1.7B | $214.1M | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.7B | $168.8M | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.7B | $285.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.7B | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.7B | $289.9M | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.9B | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.9B | $299.8M |
| Q1 26 | $872.5M | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $873.7M | $1.4B | ||
| Q3 25 | $841.5M | $1.4B | ||
| Q2 25 | $741.6M | $1.4B | ||
| Q1 25 | $603.0M | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $636.2M | $1.4B | ||
| Q3 24 | $624.3M | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $458.7M | $1.4B |
| Q1 26 | $4.2B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $4.9B | $2.5B | ||
| Q3 25 | $4.6B | $2.5B | ||
| Q2 25 | $4.5B | $2.5B | ||
| Q1 25 | $4.2B | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $4.8B | $2.5B | ||
| Q3 24 | $4.8B | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $4.5B | $2.5B |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 1.93× | 0.16× | ||
| Q3 25 | 2.01× | 0.12× | ||
| Q2 25 | 2.28× | 0.21× | ||
| Q1 25 | 2.80× | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 2.65× | 0.21× | ||
| Q3 24 | 2.97× | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 4.04× | 0.21× |
Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency
How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash FlowLast quarter | — | $29.4M |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | — | $7.4M |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | — | 0.8% |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | — | 2.3% |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | — | 0.57× |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | — | — |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $399.7M | $29.4M | ||
| Q3 25 | $287.5M | — | ||
| Q2 25 | $49.7M | $151.6M | ||
| Q1 25 | $-217.5M | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $362.9M | $101.9M | ||
| Q3 24 | $293.7M | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $176.2M | $143.5M |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $396.1M | $7.4M | ||
| Q3 25 | $284.6M | — | ||
| Q2 25 | $38.0M | $100.7M | ||
| Q1 25 | $-231.3M | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $348.0M | $81.7M | ||
| Q3 24 | $276.2M | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $169.8M | $114.0M |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 42.6% | 0.8% | ||
| Q3 25 | 36.9% | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 4.6% | 10.4% | ||
| Q1 25 | -34.6% | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 41.5% | 8.8% | ||
| Q3 24 | 34.2% | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 24.0% | 11.6% |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 0.4% | 2.3% | ||
| Q3 25 | 0.4% | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 1.4% | 5.2% | ||
| Q1 25 | 2.1% | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 1.8% | 2.2% | ||
| Q3 24 | 2.2% | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 0.9% | 3.0% |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 8.02× | 0.57× | ||
| Q3 25 | 4.03× | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.90× | 2.67× | ||
| Q1 25 | -3.60× | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 4.20× | 2.18× | ||
| Q3 24 | 2.72× | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 3.53× | 2.00× |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
LAZ
| Financial Advisory | $356.2M | 46% |
| Asset Management | $308.8M | 40% |
| Other | $106.4M | 14% |
| Corporate | $8.0M | 1% |
MSM
Segment breakdown not available.
