Analysts Set Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) Price Target at $191.29

Shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the nine analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have assigned a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $191.2857.

Several brokerages have recently commented on HLI. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Houlihan Lokey from $177.00 to $172.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. UBS Group set a $160.00 price objective on Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Zacks Research downgraded Houlihan Lokey from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Houlihan Lokey from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $210.00 to $184.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st.

Insider Transactions at Houlihan Lokey

In related news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.40, for a total value of $71,700.00. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $71,700. The trade was a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 6,265 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.26, for a total value of $941,378.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman owned 6,265 shares in the company, valued at $941,378.90. This represents a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 22.83% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Houlihan Lokey

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in Houlihan Lokey by 362.1% during the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,703,369 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $296,706,000 after purchasing an additional 1,334,769 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can raised its position in Houlihan Lokey by 2,723.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,199,459 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $208,934,000 after purchasing an additional 1,156,973 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Houlihan Lokey during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $115,478,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Houlihan Lokey during the first quarter valued at approximately $35,728,000. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd raised its position in Houlihan Lokey by 153.8% during the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 274,387 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,376,000 after purchasing an additional 166,285 shares during the period. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Down 3.4%

Shares of Houlihan Lokey stock opened at $136.23 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $149.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $162.15. Houlihan Lokey has a 52 week low of $134.41 and a 52 week high of $211.78. The company has a market capitalization of $9.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.90, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.95.

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

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st will be given a $0.70 dividend. This is an increase from Houlihan Lokey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.02%.

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.