Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) Cut to Sell at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report released on Saturday morning.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on HLI. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a report on Friday, July 17th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $160.00 to $145.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $160.00 to $153.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Zacks Research raised shares of Houlihan Lokey from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, US Capital Advisors set a $187.00 price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Houlihan Lokey has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $166.38.

Houlihan Lokey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HLI opened at $123.28 on Friday. Houlihan Lokey has a 12 month low of $112.83 and a 12 month high of $211.78. The stock has a market cap of $8.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.72, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.95. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $137.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $149.38.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.64 by ($0.29). Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 16.10% and a return on equity of 20.20%. The firm had revenue of $511.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $602.38 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.14 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey will post 7.13 EPS for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 1st. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio is 47.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Houlihan Lokey

In related news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 6,265 shares of Houlihan Lokey stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.26, for a total value of $941,378.90. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 6,265 shares in the company, valued at $941,378.90. The trade was a 50.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 22.53% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Houlihan Lokey

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 362.1% during the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,703,369 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $296,706,000 after buying an additional 1,334,769 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 2,723.2% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,199,459 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $208,934,000 after buying an additional 1,156,973 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the fourth quarter worth about $115,478,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the first quarter worth about $35,728,000. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 153.8% in the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 274,387 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $49,376,000 after acquiring an additional 166,285 shares in the last quarter. 78.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Houlihan Lokey Company Profile

Houlihan Lokey, Inc is a global investment bank and financial services firm founded in 1972 and headquartered in Los Angeles, California. The company specializes in advisory services across a broad range of transaction types and financial matters. Since its founding, Houlihan Lokey has grown to serve corporations, financial sponsors, and government entities worldwide, providing expertise in complex and high-stakes engagements.

The firm’s core service offerings include mergers and acquisitions advisory, capital markets advisory, financial restructuring and distressed M&A, and valuation and fairness opinions.