Hamilton Lane Inc. (NASDAQ:HLNE) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• Wall Street sentiment is positive overall: Hamilton Lane has a consensus analyst rating of “Moderate Buy”, with 6 buy ratings and 4 hold ratings across 10 covering brokerages. The average 12-month price target is $149.63.
• Insiders have been buying shares: Chairman Hartley R. Rogers and COO Andrea Anigati Kramer both recently purchased stock, and insiders bought 95,039 shares over the last quarter. Corporate insiders now own 22.21% of the company.
• The company boosted shareholder returns: Hamilton Lane raised its quarterly dividend to $0.60 per share, equal to a 3.2% yield, and authorized a $100 million share buyback program. The latest quarter also beat EPS expectations, even though revenue came in below estimates.

Shares of Hamilton Lane Inc. (NASDAQ:HLNE - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the ten brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $149.6250.

HLNE has been the subject of several recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Hamilton Lane from $108.00 to $102.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on shares of Hamilton Lane from $179.00 to $176.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Zacks Research cut shares of Hamilton Lane from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Hamilton Lane in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Hamilton Lane from $166.00 to $148.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 18th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hamilton Lane

In other news, Chairman Hartley R. Rogers acquired 38,290 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $78.49 per share, for a total transaction of $3,005,382.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman directly owned 93,756 shares in the company, valued at $7,358,908.44. This represents a 69.03% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Andrea Anigati Kramer acquired 1,283 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $77.46 per share, with a total value of $99,381.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 87,350 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,766,131. This trade represents a 1.49% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have bought 95,039 shares of company stock valued at $8,100,739. 22.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hamilton Lane

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Hamilton Lane by 2,557.1% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 186 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new position in Hamilton Lane during the third quarter worth $26,000. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hamilton Lane by 81.2% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 241 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hamilton Lane by 196.9% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 383 shares of the company's stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 254 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. lifted its stake in shares of Hamilton Lane by 124.7% in the third quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 427 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 237 shares in the last quarter. 97.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hamilton Lane Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ HLNE opened at $75.63 on Wednesday. Hamilton Lane has a 52-week low of $74.96 and a 52-week high of $161.13. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $89.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $111.09. The stock has a market cap of $4.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.80 and a beta of 1.14.

Hamilton Lane (NASDAQ:HLNE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.06. Hamilton Lane had a net margin of 32.83% and a return on equity of 25.98%. The firm had revenue of $193.57 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $203.05 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.21 EPS. The company's revenue was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Hamilton Lane will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hamilton Lane announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 21st that permits the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Hamilton Lane Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 18th will be given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. This is a boost from Hamilton Lane's previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 18th. Hamilton Lane's dividend payout ratio is currently 40.61%.

About Hamilton Lane

Hamilton Lane is a global private markets investment management firm specializing in the full spectrum of private equity and credit strategies. The company partners with institutional investors and wealth managers to design, implement and manage customized portfolios in primary fund investing, secondary market transactions and direct co-investment opportunities. By combining investment selection, portfolio construction and ongoing monitoring, Hamilton Lane seeks to optimize risk-adjusted returns across diverse private markets exposures.

Founded in 1991, Hamilton Lane has developed a track record of investment and advisory services in private markets.

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