Wasserstein buys Lazard shares

DealBook reports that Lazard Ltd. (NYSE: LAZ) CEO Bruce Wasserstein has purchased more than $5 million worth of Lazard stock -- 140,000 shares between this Tuesday and Thursday himself and 329,500 during the same time through a Wasserstein family trust. Lazard stock was down 37% from its May 2007 all-time high of $55.19 when he may have bought at $34.81

Last month I attended a party at which one of the attendees noted that she had recently seen Wasserstein at a social event. According to her, Wasserstein was stooped and appeared much more frail than his 59 years would suggest. At this party, my brother, William D. Cohan's New York Times best-selling book on Lazard, The Last Tycoons, was prominently displayed.

But his move to buy shares in Lazard -- although a fraction of his holdings -- is obviously trying to send a signal to investors about his view of the firm's prospects. If the current credit crunch persists, it could have trouble doing LBO deals. The question is whether its debt restructuring practice could take up the slack.

Peter Cohan is President of Peter S. Cohan & Associates, a management consulting and venture capital firm. He also teaches management at Babson College and edits The Cohan Letter. He has no financial interest in Lazard.