Hsbc Holdings PLC Lowers Position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. $HLI

Hsbc Holdings PLC lessened its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) by 28.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 25,676 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 10,042 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC’s holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $4,481,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 362.1% during the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,703,369 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $296,706,000 after buying an additional 1,334,769 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,418,549 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $247,133,000 after acquiring an additional 84,757 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 2,723.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,199,459 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $208,934,000 after acquiring an additional 1,156,973 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 4.1% during the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,041,990 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $187,506,000 after purchasing an additional 41,470 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 962,263 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $167,617,000 after purchasing an additional 5,822 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $210.00 to $184.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $177.00 to $172.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $205.00 to $193.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Zacks Research upgraded Houlihan Lokey from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, UBS Group set a $160.00 price target on Houlihan Lokey in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $191.29.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 6,265 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.26, for a total transaction of $941,378.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman directly owned 6,265 shares in the company, valued at approximately $941,378.90. This represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.40, for a total transaction of $71,700.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $71,700. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 22.83% of the company’s stock.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of Houlihan Lokey stock opened at $138.73 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $9.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.30, a PEG ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.95. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $147.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $159.22. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a twelve month low of $133.83 and a twelve month high of $211.78.

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

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. This is a boost from Houlihan Lokey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.02%.

Houlihan Lokey Company 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.