Houlihan Lokey, Inc. $HLI Shares Sold by Truist Financial Corp

Key Points

• Truist Financial Corp reduced its stake in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. by 14.6% during Q2, now holding 7,827 shares valued at approximately $1.4 million.
• Analysts have mixed views on Houlihan Lokey, with some upgrading ratings and others downgrading, leading to an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $213.29.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.60, representing an annualized yield of 1.3%, and has experienced significant insider selling, totaling over $9.4 million in the past three months.

Truist Financial Corp decreased its position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 14.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,827 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 1,334 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp's holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $1,408,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 145.7% in the first 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 period. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Houlihan Lokey in the first quarter valued at approximately $619,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 29,103 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,700,000 after acquiring an additional 1,618 shares during the period. Vista Finance LLC lifted its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Vista Finance LLC now owns 2,141 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $346,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the period. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 44.4% during the 1st quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 20,347 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,286,000 after acquiring an additional 6,255 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.07% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on HLI. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Houlihan Lokey from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $192.00 to $213.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, September 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Houlihan Lokey in a research note on Thursday. They issued a "hold" rating and a $210.00 target price on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Houlihan Lokey from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $185.00 to $232.00 in a report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $185.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Houlihan Lokey presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $213.29.

Insider Activity

In related news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $196.22, for a total transaction of $98,110.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Paul Eric Siegert sold 40,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.95, for a total transaction of $7,998,000.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 47,311 shares of company stock worth $9,477,040 over the last three months. Insiders own 22.83% of the company's stock.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Down 1.0%

HLI opened at $187.98 on Friday. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a twelve month low of $137.99 and a twelve month high of $211.78. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $198.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $181.86. The company has a market cap of $13.22 billion, a PE ratio of 31.65 and a beta of 0.87.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.45. The company had revenue of $605.35 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $573.07 million. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 23.75% and a net margin of 16.46%.Houlihan Lokey's quarterly revenue was up 17.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.22 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd were issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Houlihan Lokey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.40%.

Houlihan Lokey Company 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.

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