Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) Holdings Raised by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 1.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 124,417 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,511 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.18% of Houlihan Lokey worth $20,093,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the first quarter worth approximately $54,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position 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 worth $59,000 after buying an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its position 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 worth $89,000 after buying an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the fourth quarter worth approximately $105,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its position 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 worth $99,000 after buying an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.07% of the company's stock.

Houlihan Lokey Trading Down 0.7%

Houlihan Lokey stock traded down $1.34 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $189.41. The company's stock had a trading volume of 353,005 shares, compared to its average volume of 359,723. The firm has a market cap of $13.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.54 and a beta of 0.83. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $177.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $170.84. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a twelve month low of $137.99 and a twelve month high of $192.44.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $666.42 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $628.25 million. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 21.61% and a net margin of 16.73%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.27 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were paid a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.27%. This is a boost from Houlihan Lokey's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. Houlihan Lokey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.24%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on HLI shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Houlihan Lokey from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $192.00 price objective (up previously from $159.00) on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $185.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Houlihan Lokey presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $197.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Houlihan Lokey

In other Houlihan Lokey news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the firm's 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Irwin Gold sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.81, for a total value 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. 23.68% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.