Wolverine Trading LLC Makes New $270,000 Investment in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Wolverine Trading LLC acquired a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 1,552 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $270,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of HLI. Barclays PLC increased its position in Houlihan Lokey by 21.4% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 36,821 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,818,000 after buying an additional 6,483 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 1,447.7% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 19,903 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,456,000 after purchasing an additional 18,617 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in Houlihan Lokey by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 10,859 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,886,000 after purchasing an additional 469 shares during the period. SteelPeak Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Houlihan Lokey during the 4th quarter valued at $207,000. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC raised its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 341.0% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 307,304 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $53,366,000 after buying an additional 237,615 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.07% of the company's stock.

Houlihan Lokey Trading Down 0.6%

Houlihan Lokey stock traded down $1.06 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $174.32. 303,275 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 351,146. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $164.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $171.39. The company has a market cap of $12.17 billion, a PE ratio of 33.27 and a beta of 0.82. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a one year low of $127.14 and a one 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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $666.42 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $628.25 million. Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 16.00% and a return on equity of 20.04%. 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 company earned $1.27 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a $0.60 dividend. This is an increase from Houlihan Lokey's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. Houlihan Lokey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.24%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Houlihan Lokey news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the business's 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 8,008 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on HLI. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Houlihan Lokey from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Houlihan Lokey from $190.00 to $156.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $185.00.

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.