1,939 Shares in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) Acquired by Sowell Financial Services LLC

Sowell Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 1,939 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $313,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of HLI. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the 4th quarter valued at about $143,559,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 39,574.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 686,375 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,108,500,000 after purchasing an additional 684,645 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the 4th quarter valued at about $114,047,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 122.7% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,041,201 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $180,815,000 after purchasing an additional 573,745 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Congress Asset Management Co. acquired a new stake in Houlihan Lokey in the 1st quarter worth about $81,420,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.07% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on HLI. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Houlihan Lokey from $159.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Houlihan Lokey from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Houlihan Lokey from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Houlihan Lokey from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Houlihan Lokey has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $192.20.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Up 2.3%

Shares of Houlihan Lokey stock traded up $3.97 on Monday, hitting $176.95. 322,751 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 351,131. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.55 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $169.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $170.04. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 1-year low of $129.32 and a 1-year high of $192.10.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.35. The business 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 business's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.27 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 EPS for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. This is a boost from Houlihan Lokey's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.36%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. Houlihan Lokey's payout ratio is currently 41.24%.

Insider Transactions at Houlihan Lokey

In other news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 8,008 shares of Houlihan Lokey stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.71, for a total transaction of $1,431,109.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of Houlihan Lokey stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were 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. Insiders own 23.68% of the company's stock.

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.