Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Has $1.28 Million Holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 520.2% during the first quarter, now owning a total of 7,908 shares valued at approximately $1.277 million.
• In recent trading, shares of Houlihan Lokey saw a slight decline, trading down 0.5% to $192.16, following a twelve-month range between a low of $137.99 and a high of $198.78.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend payout of $0.60, to be distributed on September 15th, representing a 1.2% dividend yield based on its annualized dividend of $2.40.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 520.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,908 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 6,633 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $1,277,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 131,096 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $22,766,000 after buying an additional 9,914 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 9.4% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,875,220 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $325,651,000 after acquiring an additional 161,647 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 44.8% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 3,331 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $572,000 after purchasing an additional 1,031 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 25,808 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,482,000 after purchasing an additional 1,612 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Houlihan Lokey by 122.7% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,041,201 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $180,815,000 after buying an additional 573,745 shares in the last quarter. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 8,008 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of Houlihan Lokey stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.02, for a total value of $86,510.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 13,508 shares of company stock valued at $2,431,670. Company insiders own 22.83% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on HLI. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Houlihan Lokey from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $185.00 to $232.00 in a report on Monday, July 14th. Wall Street Zen lowered Houlihan Lokey from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $192.00 price target (up previously from $159.00) on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report 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 report on Friday, July 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $206.40.

Houlihan Lokey Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of HLI traded down $0.68 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $191.71. 315,002 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 406,662. The business has a fifty day moving average of $183.74 and a 200-day moving average of $173.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.38 billion, a PE ratio of 32.28 and a beta of 0.86. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 1-year low of $137.99 and a 1-year high of $198.78.

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

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

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

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.