Ethic Inc. Takes Position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Ethic Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 4,786 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $831,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,532 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $258,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,617 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $281,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Mariner LLC raised its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 12,220 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,122,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 1,636 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $284,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp lifted its position in Houlihan Lokey by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 3,771 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $655,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.07% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on HLI shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. StockNews.com cut shares of Houlihan Lokey from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Houlihan Lokey from $229.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $172.00 to $169.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $185.00.

Houlihan Lokey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HLI traded down $1.43 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $177.46. The stock had a trading volume of 43,239 shares, compared to its average volume of 350,943. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.45 billion, a PE ratio of 33.84 and a beta of 0.82. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 52 week low of $127.14 and a 52 week high of $192.10. The business's 50-day moving average price is $161.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $171.94.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.35. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 16.00%. The company had revenue of $666.42 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $628.25 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.27 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 EPS for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.35%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This is a boost from Houlihan Lokey's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Houlihan Lokey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.24%.

Houlihan Lokey Profile

Houlihan Lokey, Inc, an investment banking company, provides merger and acquisition (M&A), capital market, financial restructuring, and financial and valuation advisory services worldwide. It operates in three segments: Corporate Finance, Financial Restructuring, and Financial and Valuation Advisory.