Analysts Set Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) Price Target at $157.00

Shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the six brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have assigned a hold recommendation and one has issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $157.00.

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on HLI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $132.00 to $129.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $146.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $149.00 price target for the company. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $154.00 price objective (up from $139.00) on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st.

Houlihan Lokey Price Performance

NYSE HLI opened at $171.50 on Monday. Houlihan Lokey has a 12 month low of $94.67 and a 12 month high of $172.31. The company has a market capitalization of $11.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.73 and a beta of 0.66. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $156.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $142.24.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.22. The company had revenue of $514.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $508.70 million. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 18.80% and a net margin of 15.30%. The firm’s revenue was up 23.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.89 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Houlihan Lokey will post 5.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.47%.

Insider Activity at Houlihan Lokey

In other Houlihan Lokey news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 8,317 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.89, for a total value of $1,263,269.13. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Houlihan Lokey news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 8,317 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.89, for a total value of $1,263,269.13. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Gillian Beth Zucker sold 200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.08, for a total value of $33,616.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,601 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,109,496.08. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 9,917 shares of company stock valued at $1,513,129. Corporate insiders own 25.97% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Houlihan Lokey

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Crewe Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 264.5% during the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 226 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the third quarter worth about $38,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the second quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 194.9% during the 1st quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 401 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.07% of the company’s stock.

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.