Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. Raises Holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 129.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,613 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 2,036 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $583,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the first quarter worth $619,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 9.7% during the 1st quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,987 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $805,000 after buying an additional 439 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 145.7% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,250 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $686,000 after purchasing an additional 2,520 shares during the last quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Houlihan Lokey during the 1st quarter worth $313,000. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the first quarter worth about $3,297,000. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE HLI traded down $1.34 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $189.41. The company had a trading volume of 237,818 shares, compared to its average volume of 359,292. The stock has a market cap of $13.22 billion, a PE ratio of 32.54 and a beta of 0.83. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a one year low of $137.99 and a one year high of $192.44. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $176.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $170.74.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $666.42 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $628.25 million. Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 16.73% and a return on equity of 21.61%. Houlihan Lokey's revenue was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.27 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect 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 was paid on Sunday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.27%. This is a boost from Houlihan Lokey's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 2nd. Houlihan Lokey's payout ratio is presently 41.24%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Houlihan Lokey news, Chairman Irwin Gold sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.81, for a total value of $914,050.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.02, for a total transaction of $86,510.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 13,508 shares of company stock worth $2,431,670. 23.68% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Houlihan Lokey from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $192.00 price target (up from $159.00) on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $185.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $197.00.

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.