Christopher Crain Sells 500 Shares of Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) Stock

Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) General Counsel Christopher Crain sold 500 shares of the company’s 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

Houlihan Lokey stock opened at $184.72 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $12.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.79 and a beta of 0.95. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a one year low of $137.99 and a one year high of $211.78. The business has a fifty day moving average of $178.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $188.98.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.15. Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 16.62% and a return on equity of 24.17%. The business had revenue of $659.45 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $639.08 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.46 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 EPS for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st were given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on Houlihan Lokey from $230.00 to $228.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Houlihan Lokey from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 29th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $230.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a report on Thursday, October 9th. They set a “hold” rating and a $210.00 target price for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $207.71.

Institutional Trading of Houlihan Lokey

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA lifted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 83.7% in the 4th quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA now owns 5,175 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $918,000 after purchasing an additional 2,358 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 10.0% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,586 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $973,000 after buying an additional 507 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Houlihan Lokey by 9.0% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 174,695 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,868,000 after acquiring an additional 14,483 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 13.3% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,005 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $206,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the period. Finally, Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd raised its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 78.1% in the 3rd quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 2,488 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $511,000 after acquiring an additional 1,091 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.07% of the company’s stock.

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.