Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Makes New $883,000 Investment in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. $HLI

Key Points

• Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC made a new investment of approximately $883,000 in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the 2nd quarter, acquiring 4,905 shares.
• Several major investors, including Vanguard and Goldman Sachs, have increased their holdings in Houlihan Lokey, with 78.07% of the company's stock now owned by institutional investors.
• The stock is currently rated as a "Moderate Buy" by analysts, with a consensus price target of $212.43, following a recent decrease in price targets from various research firms.

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 4,905 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $883,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,306,604 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $857,017,000 after buying an additional 41,030 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 5.7% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 415,743 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $67,143,000 after buying an additional 22,553 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 402,763 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $65,046,000 after buying an additional 11,709 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 12.1% during the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 344,604 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $55,654,000 after buying an additional 37,300 shares during the period. Finally, Westfield Capital Management Co. LP bought a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the 1st quarter worth $46,236,000. 78.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on HLI. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $232.00 to $226.00 and set a "moderate buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $192.00 to $213.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, September 8th. Zacks Research cut shares of Houlihan Lokey from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Houlihan Lokey from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $212.43.

Houlihan Lokey Price Performance

NYSE:HLI opened at $190.36 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $13.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.05 and a beta of 0.87. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a one year low of $137.99 and a one year high of $211.78. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $198.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $182.88.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 16.46% and a return on equity of 23.75%. The company had revenue of $605.35 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $573.07 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.22 EPS. The business's revenue was up 17.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 EPS for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd were paid a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Houlihan Lokey's dividend payout ratio is currently 40.40%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Paul Eric Siegert sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.95, for a total value of $7,998,000.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Chairman Irwin Gold sold 6,811 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.75, for a total transaction of $1,380,930.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 47,311 shares of company stock worth $9,477,040. 22.83% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.