Vanguard Group Inc. Buys 41,030 Shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Key Points

• The Vanguard Group Inc. has increased its holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. by 0.8%, now owning over 5.3 million shares worth approximately $857 million.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Houlihan Lokey, with recommendations ranging from a "buy" to a "hold" and a consensus target price of $206.40.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.60 per share, reflecting a yield of approximately 1.3%, to be paid on September 15th.

Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 0.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,306,604 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 41,030 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 7.57% of Houlihan Lokey worth $857,017,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of HLI. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 684,645 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co. bought a new position in Houlihan Lokey in the 1st quarter valued at about $81,420,000. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP bought a new position in Houlihan Lokey in the 1st quarter valued at about $46,236,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 1,946.8% in the 1st quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 275,458 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $44,486,000 after acquiring an additional 262,000 shares during the period. Finally, Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 3,281,294 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $569,830,000 after acquiring an additional 208,851 shares during the period. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Houlihan Lokey

In other news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of Houlihan Lokey stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.02, for a total transaction of $86,510.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Irwin Gold sold 5,000 shares of Houlihan Lokey stock in a transaction on Monday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.81, for a total transaction of $914,050.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 13,508 shares of company stock worth $2,431,670. Company insiders own 22.83% of the company's stock.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HLI traded down $3.86 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $190.29. 129,070 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 402,896. The company has a market cap of $13.28 billion, a PE ratio of 32.04 and a beta of 0.86. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $186.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $173.71. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 1-year low of $137.99 and a 1-year high of $198.78.

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 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 firm had revenue of $605.35 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $573.07 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.22 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 17.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Houlihan Lokey from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised 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. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $192.00 target price (up from $159.00) on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Houlihan Lokey from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $185.00 to $232.00 in a report on Monday, July 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Houlihan Lokey has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $206.40.

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.