Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Raises Holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 5.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 29,103 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,618 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $4,700,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Private Trust Co. NA bought a new stake in Houlihan Lokey in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the first quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 744.2% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 363 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $59,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $105,000. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 374.6% during the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 655 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $114,000 after acquiring an additional 517 shares in the last quarter. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $192.00 price objective (up previously from $159.00) on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Houlihan Lokey from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $192.20.

Insider Activity at Houlihan Lokey

In other news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 2nd. The stock was 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 available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 8,008 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.71, for a total value of $1,431,109.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 23.68% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Houlihan Lokey Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HLI traded up $0.00 during trading on Friday, reaching $182.75. 874,232 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 353,250. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 52-week low of $133.48 and a 52-week high of $192.10. The company has a 50-day moving average of $171.90 and a 200-day moving average of $170.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.40 and a beta of 0.83.

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

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.31%. 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 payout ratio is presently 41.24%.

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.