Exchange Traded Concepts LLC Increases Stake in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 44.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 20,347 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 6,255 shares during the quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC's holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $3,286,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Private Trust Co. NA purchased a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the first quarter valued at about $54,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the fourth quarter valued at about $62,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 744.2% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 363 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the period. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the fourth quarter valued at about $105,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.07% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.02, for a total value of $86,510.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 8,008 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.71, for a total transaction of $1,431,109.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 23.68% of the company's stock.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Up 0.7%

NYSE:HLI opened at $172.67 on Tuesday. The company's 50 day moving average price is $167.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $170.41. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 52 week low of $128.63 and a 52 week high of $192.10. The stock has a market cap of $12.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.95 and a beta of 0.83.

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

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared 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 is a boost from Houlihan Lokey's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.39%. Houlihan Lokey's dividend payout ratio is presently 41.24%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on HLI. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Houlihan Lokey from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $190.00 to $156.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $185.00.

About Houlihan Lokey

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.

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