Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) Shares Sold by Royce & Associates LP

Key Points

• Royce & Associates LP reduced its stake in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. by 22.3%, now holding 77,014 shares worth approximately $12.4 million after selling 22,154 shares in the first quarter.
• Chairman Scott L. Beiser and another insider sold a combined total of 13,508 shares valued at over $2.4 million in recent months, indicating significant insider activity.
• Analysts have increased their price targets for Houlihan Lokey, with Wells Fargo raising its target from $185 to $209, reflecting positive market sentiment around the stock.

Royce & Associates LP reduced its position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 22.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 77,014 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 22,154 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP owned about 0.11% of Houlihan Lokey worth $12,438,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Houlihan Lokey by 39,574.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 686,375 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,108,500,000 after acquiring an additional 684,645 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the fourth quarter worth $114,047,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 122.7% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,041,201 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $180,815,000 after buying an additional 573,745 shares in the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the first quarter worth $81,420,000. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 1,946.8% during the first quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 275,458 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $44,486,000 after buying an additional 262,000 shares in the last quarter. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HLI has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $185.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Houlihan Lokey from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Houlihan Lokey from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $185.00 to $232.00 in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $206.40.

Houlihan Lokey Trading Down 1.0%

NYSE:HLI traded down $1.85 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $191.00. The stock had a trading volume of 106,233 shares, compared to its average volume of 401,965. The company has a market capitalization of $13.33 billion, a PE ratio of 32.82 and a beta of 0.83. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a twelve month low of $137.99 and a twelve month high of $198.78. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $181.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $172.51.

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

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd were given a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.26%. This is a positive change from Houlihan Lokey's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 2nd. Houlihan Lokey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.24%.

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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Chairman Irwin Gold sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 quarter, insiders sold 13,508 shares of company stock valued at $2,431,670. 23.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.