Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) Chairman Scott Beiser Sells 6,265 Shares

Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) Chairman Scott Beiser sold 6,265 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.26, for a total transaction of $941,378.90. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 6,265 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $941,378.90. This represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Houlihan Lokey Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE HLI traded up $1.64 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $151.30. 804,846 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 631,023. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $148.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $165.84. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 12-month low of $134.41 and a 12-month high of $211.78. The company has a market cap of $10.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.33, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.99.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.79 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $635.64 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $679.22 million. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 22.88% and a net margin of 16.26%.Houlihan Lokey’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.96 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 8.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a $0.70 dividend. This is a boost from Houlihan Lokey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.59%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Houlihan Lokey

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Houlihan Lokey during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Oakworth Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 64.4% in the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 148 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Core Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Houlihan Lokey during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on HLI shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $205.00 to $193.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $210.00 to $184.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Houlihan Lokey from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Zacks Research downgraded Houlihan Lokey from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, UBS Group set a $160.00 price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Houlihan Lokey currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $191.29.

About Houlihan Lokey

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.