Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) Stock Rating Upgraded by Citizens Jmp

Key Points

• Citizens JMP upgraded Houlihan Lokey to “outperform” from “market perform” and set a $175 price target, implying 39.16% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment is generally favorable, with seven Buy ratings, three Holds, and one Sell; the consensus rating is “Moderate Buy” with a $161.38 target.
• Despite the upgrade, the company’s latest quarter missed expectations: EPS was $1.35 versus $1.64 expected, while revenue fell 15.6% year over year to $511 million.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Citizens Jmp from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report issued on Friday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage presently has a $175.00 price target on the financial services provider's stock. Citizens Jmp's price target would suggest a potential upside of 39.16% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $147.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $160.00 to $145.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Wolfe Research raised shares of Houlihan Lokey from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $160.00 to $153.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $161.38.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE HLI opened at $125.75 on Friday. Houlihan Lokey has a twelve month low of $112.83 and a twelve month high of $204.18. The firm has a market cap of $8.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.13, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a 50 day moving average of $130.08 and a 200 day moving average of $139.59.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.64 by ($0.29). The company had revenue of $511.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $602.38 million. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 20.20% and a net margin of 16.10%.The company's revenue for the quarter was down 15.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.14 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey will post 6.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.15, for a total transaction of $140,150.00. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 1,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $140,150. This represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 22.53% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Houlihan Lokey

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HLI. Diversified Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Houlihan Lokey in the 3rd quarter worth about $2,294,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Houlihan Lokey by 53.1% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 12,464 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,575,000 after purchasing an additional 4,324 shares during the period. Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC purchased a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the third quarter worth approximately $253,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 131.1% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 587 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $74,000 after acquiring an additional 333 shares during the period. Finally, Atwood & Palmer Inc. increased its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 514.7% during the third quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 128,463 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $16,230,000 after acquiring an additional 107,566 shares during the period. 78.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Houlihan Lokey

Houlihan Lokey, Inc is a global investment bank that provides financial advisory services to corporations, institutions, governments and other organizations. The firm focuses on complex strategic, financial and restructuring matters and is known for its independent advisory model.

Its principal businesses include corporate finance, financial restructuring, and financial and valuation advisory. Services include mergers and acquisitions advice, capital-raising and other strategic transactions, restructuring and liability management, fairness opinions, solvency analysis, financial reporting valuations, and transaction opinions.

Founded in 1972, Houlihan Lokey serves clients through offices across North America, Europe, the Asia-Pacific region and the Middle East.