Appleton Partners Inc. MA Takes $2.23 Million Position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. $HLI

Appleton Partners Inc. MA acquired a new position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 10,835 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,225,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HLI. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Houlihan Lokey during the third quarter worth approximately $230,335,000. Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Houlihan Lokey during the 3rd quarter valued at $589,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 75.6% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 713,494 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $146,495,000 after purchasing an additional 307,214 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 63.2% in the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 33,430 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,016,000 after buying an additional 12,944 shares in the last quarter. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 112.7% in the third quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 11,607 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,383,000 after buying an additional 6,150 shares during the period. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HLI has been the subject of several research reports. Weiss Ratings cut Houlihan Lokey from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $196.00 price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $218.00 to $214.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $209.00 to $211.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $216.00 to $215.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $209.17.

Houlihan Lokey Trading Up 2.8%

HLI stock opened at $172.66 on Friday. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a one year low of $137.99 and a one year high of $211.78. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $178.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $187.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.10 billion, a PE ratio of 26.52 and a beta of 0.94.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $717.07 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $696.72 million. Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 16.91% and a return on equity of 24.46%. The firm’s revenue was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.64 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 2nd. Houlihan Lokey’s payout ratio is 36.87%.

Insider Activity

In other news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.17, for a total value of $87,085.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 22.83% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Houlihan Lokey 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.