Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC Purchases 2,098 Shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 47.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,531 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 2,098 shares during the period. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC's holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $1,055,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HLI. Bogart Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 111.1% during the first quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 152 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the first quarter valued at about $54,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake 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 acquiring an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 17.5% during the first quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 550 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $89,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 101.0% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 613 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $99,000 after acquiring an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.02, for a total transaction of $86,510.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 8,008 shares of the business'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 value of $1,431,109.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 13,508 shares of company stock valued at $2,431,670. Insiders own 23.68% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on HLI. Morgan Stanley reiterated 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Houlihan Lokey from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $185.00 to $232.00 in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $185.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Houlihan Lokey from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Houlihan Lokey currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $206.40.

Houlihan Lokey Trading Down 0.7%

NYSE HLI traded down $1.36 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $196.01. The company's stock had a trading volume of 393,857 shares, compared to its average volume of 400,895. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $181.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $172.18. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 52 week low of $137.99 and a 52 week high of $198.78. The stock has a market cap of $13.68 billion, a PE ratio of 33.68 and a beta of 0.83.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last issued its 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. Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 16.73% and a return on equity of 21.61%. The firm had revenue of $666.42 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $628.25 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.27 earnings per share. Houlihan Lokey's revenue was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 EPS for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The firm 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 represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 2nd. This is a boost from Houlihan Lokey's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Houlihan Lokey's payout ratio is 41.24%.

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.