Sowell Financial Services LLC Has $813,000 Holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. $HLI

Key Points

• Sowell Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. by 132.9% in the second quarter, now owning 4,516 shares valued at $813,000.
• Institutional investors own 78.07% of Houlihan Lokey's stock, indicative of strong interest among large investors.
• The company reported earnings of $2.14 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations, with a revenue increase of 17.8% year-over-year.

Sowell Financial Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 132.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,516 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 2,577 shares during the quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC's holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $813,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of HLI. Bogart Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 111.1% during the first quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 152 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the period. Motco acquired a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the first quarter worth $29,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the first quarter worth $33,000. TCTC Holdings LLC increased its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 103.5% during the first quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 232 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 3,714.3% during the first quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 267 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the period. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Houlihan Lokey

In other Houlihan Lokey news, Chairman Paul Eric Siegert sold 40,000 shares of the firm's 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $196.22, for a total transaction of $98,110.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 52,311 shares of company stock valued at $10,391,090. Corporate insiders own 22.83% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HLI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $185.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Houlihan Lokey from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Houlihan Lokey from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $185.00 to $232.00 in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $192.00 to $213.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, September 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Houlihan Lokey currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $210.60.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE HLI opened at $209.15 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $14.71 billion, a PE ratio of 35.21 and a beta of 0.86. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 12-month low of $137.99 and a 12-month high of $211.78. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $196.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $178.41.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) 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 analyst estimates of $573.07 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.22 earnings per share. Houlihan Lokey's revenue was up 17.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd were paid a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 2nd. Houlihan Lokey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.40%.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding HLI? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report).

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.