Norden Group LLC Purchases 3,168 Shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Key Points

• Norden Group LLC increased its stake in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. by 179.0%, owning a total of 4,938 shares worth approximately $797,000 after acquiring an additional 3,168 shares.
• Multiple brokerages have recently upgraded Houlihan Lokey's stock ratings, with Wells Fargo raising its price target to $209.00 and Keefe, Bruyette & Woods setting a target of $232.00.
• Houlihan Lokey announced a quarterly dividend of $0.60, with an annualized dividend yield of 1.25%, scheduled for payment on September 15th.

Norden Group LLC increased its holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 179.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,938 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,168 shares during the period. Norden Group LLC's holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $797,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Corton Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the 1st quarter valued at about $218,000. LPL Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 12.9% during the 1st quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 95,038 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $15,349,000 after acquiring an additional 10,879 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 14,522 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,345,000 after purchasing an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. Motco bought a new position in Houlihan Lokey in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 10,653 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,720,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. 78.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on HLI shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Houlihan Lokey from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $185.00 to $232.00 in a report on Monday, July 14th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Houlihan Lokey from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $185.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $192.00 target price (up previously from $159.00) on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $206.40.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Down 1.0%

NYSE:HLI traded down $1.86 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $188.81. The company had a trading volume of 179,440 shares, compared to its average volume of 407,409. The firm has a market cap of $13.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.74 and a beta of 0.83. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $182.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $172.96. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a twelve month low of $137.99 and a twelve month high of $198.78.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.45. Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 16.46% and a return on equity of 23.75%. The business had revenue of $605.35 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $573.07 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.22 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 17.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 earnings per share 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 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 dividend payout ratio is 40.40%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 8,008 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.71, for a total value of $1,431,109.68. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.02, for a total transaction of $86,510.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 13,508 shares of company stock valued at $2,431,670. Company insiders own 23.68% of the company's stock.

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.