Hamilton Lane Inc. (NASDAQ:HLNE) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Hamilton Lane Inc. (NASDAQ:HLNE) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $150.00.

HLNE has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Hamilton Lane from $108.00 to $102.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Hamilton Lane from $171.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Zacks Research lowered Hamilton Lane from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $148.00 price objective on Hamilton Lane and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Hamilton Lane in a research report on Friday, May 22nd.

Hamilton Lane Stock Up 1.1%

Hamilton Lane stock opened at $87.11 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $94.45 and a 200 day simple moving average of $116.42. Hamilton Lane has a 12-month low of $82.23 and a 12-month high of $179.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.74 and a beta of 1.18.

Hamilton Lane (NASDAQ:HLNE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.06. Hamilton Lane had a return on equity of 25.98% and a net margin of 32.83%.The business had revenue of $193.57 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $203.05 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.21 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hamilton Lane will post 6.26 EPS for the current year.

Hamilton Lane Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 18th will be given a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 18th. This is a positive change from Hamilton Lane’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Hamilton Lane’s dividend payout ratio is 40.61%.

Hamilton Lane announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Thursday, May 21st that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Chairman Hartley R. Rogers acquired 466 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $92.76 per share, for a total transaction of $43,226.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman directly owned 55,466 shares in the company, valued at $5,145,026.16. This trade represents a 0.85% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 22.21% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hamilton Lane

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HLNE. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in Hamilton Lane by 418.8% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,060,511 shares of the company’s stock worth $142,946,000 after purchasing an additional 856,112 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Hamilton Lane by 148.3% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,085,850 shares of the company’s stock worth $145,844,000 after purchasing an additional 648,588 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Hamilton Lane during the 4th quarter worth about $68,657,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its position in shares of Hamilton Lane by 117.8% during the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 756,148 shares of the company’s stock worth $101,558,000 after buying an additional 409,013 shares during the period. Finally, Westfield Capital Management Co. LP acquired a new position in shares of Hamilton Lane during the 4th quarter worth about $48,820,000. 97.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Hamilton Lane

Hamilton Lane is a global private markets investment management firm specializing in the full spectrum of private equity and credit strategies. The company partners with institutional investors and wealth managers to design, implement and manage customized portfolios in primary fund investing, secondary market transactions and direct co-investment opportunities. By combining investment selection, portfolio construction and ongoing monitoring, Hamilton Lane seeks to optimize risk-adjusted returns across diverse private markets exposures.

Founded in 1991, Hamilton Lane has developed a track record of investment and advisory services in private markets.