West Coast Financial LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

West Coast Financial LLC trimmed its stake in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 11.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,930 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 2,382 shares during the quarter. West Coast Financial LLC's holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $2,896,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the fourth quarter worth about $143,559,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 39,574.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 686,375 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,108,500,000 after acquiring an additional 684,645 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Houlihan Lokey in the 4th quarter worth approximately $114,047,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in 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 during the period. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 731.6% in the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 347,469 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $60,341,000 after purchasing an additional 305,685 shares during the period. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Houlihan Lokey news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the business's 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 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. Corporate insiders own 23.68% of the company's stock.

Houlihan Lokey Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of HLI stock traded down $1.23 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $175.88. The stock had a trading volume of 273,782 shares, compared to its average volume of 351,092. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 52-week low of $127.14 and a 52-week high of $192.10. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $164.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $171.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.28 billion, a PE ratio of 33.56 and a beta of 0.83.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last released its 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 20.04% and a net margin of 16.00%. The company had revenue of $666.42 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $628.25 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.27 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.36%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This is a positive change from Houlihan Lokey's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Houlihan Lokey's payout ratio is currently 41.24%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HLI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $190.00 to $156.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Houlihan Lokey from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $185.00.

About Houlihan Lokey

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.