Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI - Free Report) by 27.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 30,622 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 6,667 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.'s holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $3,672,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of HLI. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 16.9% in the third quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 753 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 2.8% in the second quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,845 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $476,000 after buying an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Steph & Co. lifted its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 4.5% in the third quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 3,098 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $332,000 after buying an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 5.7% in the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 2,823 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $213,000 after buying an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Investment Consultants LLC lifted its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 2.2% in the third quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 7,840 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $840,000 after buying an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. 78.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on HLI. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $127.00 target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Monday, January 29th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $136.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th.

Insider Activity

In other news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.94, for a total transaction of $128,940.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 25.97% of the company's stock.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

HLI stock traded up $1.39 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $123.77. 333,936 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 275,389. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 52-week low of $84.89 and a 52-week high of $133.80. The business has a 50 day moving average of $127.09 and a 200-day moving average of $117.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.71 and a beta of 0.68.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.10. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 18.06% and a net margin of 14.90%. The business had revenue of $511.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $493.02 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.14 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 4.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.78%. Houlihan Lokey's dividend payout ratio is 54.59%.

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.