NBC Securities Inc. Acquires 3,761 Shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

NBC Securities Inc. increased its position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 125,366.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,764 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 3,761 shares during the quarter. NBC Securities Inc.'s holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $607,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in HLI. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,532 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $258,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,617 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $281,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC lifted its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 12,220 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,122,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. boosted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 1,636 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $284,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the period. Finally, M&T Bank Corp boosted its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 3,771 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $655,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

Shares of HLI stock traded up $2.09 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $176.99. The company had a trading volume of 278,947 shares, compared to its average volume of 350,956. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $164.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $171.32. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a one year low of $127.14 and a one year high of $192.10. The firm has a market cap of $12.35 billion, a PE ratio of 33.78 and a beta of 0.82.

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

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a $0.60 dividend. This is an increase from Houlihan Lokey's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.36%. Houlihan Lokey's dividend payout ratio is currently 41.24%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.02, for a total transaction of $86,510.00. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 8,008 shares of the firm's 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 23.68% of the company's stock.

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.