Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• Houlihan Lokey has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating from nine analysts, with five buy ratings and four hold ratings. The average 1-year price target is about $191.29.
• The company recently missed earnings and revenue expectations for its latest quarter, reporting $1.63 EPS versus $1.79 expected and revenue of $635.64 million versus $679.22 million expected. Revenue fell 4.6% year over year.
• Houlihan Lokey raised its quarterly dividend to $0.70 per share from $0.60, implying an annualized yield of about 2.1%. Meanwhile, insider and institutional activity remained notable, including a 50% stock sale by Chairman Scott L. Beiser and continued heavy institutional ownership.

Shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the nine brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $191.2857.

A number of brokerages have recently commented on HLI. Weiss Ratings cut Houlihan Lokey from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. UBS Group set a $160.00 target price on Houlihan Lokey in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $177.00 to $172.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $210.00 to $184.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $205.00 to $193.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 9th.

Insider Transactions at Houlihan Lokey

In related news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 6,265 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.26, for a total transaction of $941,378.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 6,265 shares in the company, valued at $941,378.90. The trade was a 50.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 22.83% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Houlihan Lokey

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 8,198 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,177,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the period. Henshaw Capital LLC purchased a new position in Houlihan Lokey during the 1st quarter valued at $1,144,000. Alpine Woods Capital Investors LLC boosted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 224.8% during the 1st quarter. Alpine Woods Capital Investors LLC now owns 11,975 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,720,000 after acquiring an additional 8,288 shares during the period. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC boosted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 36.7% during the 1st quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 120,258 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $17,271,000 after acquiring an additional 32,276 shares during the period. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. boosted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 510.7% during the 1st quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 55,338 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,948,000 after acquiring an additional 46,277 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.07% of the company's stock.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

Shares of Houlihan Lokey stock opened at $134.17 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $9.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.95. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $146.54 and a 200-day moving average price of $158.46. Houlihan Lokey has a one year low of $131.30 and a one year high of $211.78.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.79 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $635.64 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $679.22 million. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 22.88% and a net margin of 16.26%.Houlihan Lokey's revenue for the quarter was down 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.96 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Houlihan Lokey will post 8.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. This is an increase from Houlihan Lokey's previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Houlihan Lokey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.02%.

About Houlihan Lokey

Houlihan Lokey, Inc is a global investment bank and financial services firm founded in 1972 and headquartered in Los Angeles, California. The company specializes in advisory services across a broad range of transaction types and financial matters. Since its founding, Houlihan Lokey has grown to serve corporations, financial sponsors, and government entities worldwide, providing expertise in complex and high-stakes engagements.

The firm's core service offerings include mergers and acquisitions advisory, capital markets advisory, financial restructuring and distressed M&A, and valuation and fairness opinions.

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