Woodley Farra Manion Portfolio Management Inc. Sells 4,355 Shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Woodley Farra Manion Portfolio Management Inc. trimmed its stake in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 1.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 289,790 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 4,355 shares during the quarter. Houlihan Lokey accounts for 2.3% of Woodley Farra Manion Portfolio Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Woodley Farra Manion Portfolio Management Inc. owned about 0.41% of Houlihan Lokey worth $46,801,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 39,574.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 686,375 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,108,500,000 after purchasing an additional 684,645 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the 4th quarter worth $114,047,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in Houlihan Lokey by 122.7% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,041,201 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $180,815,000 after acquiring an additional 573,745 shares during the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. bought a new position in Houlihan Lokey in the first quarter valued at about $81,420,000. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its position in Houlihan Lokey by 1,946.8% in the first quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 275,458 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $44,486,000 after purchasing an additional 262,000 shares during the last quarter. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Houlihan Lokey Price Performance

Shares of HLI stock traded down $0.92 on Friday, hitting $189.74. 356,403 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 412,984. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 52 week low of $137.99 and a 52 week high of $198.78. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $183.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $173.10. The firm has a market cap of $13.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.94 and a beta of 0.86.

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

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be given a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. Houlihan Lokey's payout ratio is currently 40.40%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Irwin Gold sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.81, for a total transaction of $914,050.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 13,508 shares of company stock worth $2,431,670. Corporate insiders own 23.68% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $192.00 price objective (up previously from $159.00) on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Houlihan Lokey from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Houlihan Lokey from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $185.00 to $232.00 in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $185.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $206.40.

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.