Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Raises Stock Position in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) by 1.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 26,706 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 482 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Houlihan Lokey were worth $4,220,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Houlihan Lokey during the second quarter worth $38,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC acquired a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 81.5% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 441 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Houlihan Lokey in the 3rd quarter valued at about $76,000. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. raised its position in Houlihan Lokey by 69.1% during the second quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 678 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $91,000 after acquiring an additional 277 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.07% of the company’s stock.

Houlihan Lokey Price Performance

HLI opened at $164.80 on Tuesday. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 12 month low of $112.84 and a 12 month high of $192.10. The business has a 50-day moving average of $179.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $163.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.70 and a beta of 0.69.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.46 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.31 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $574.96 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $537.93 million. Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 15.77% and a return on equity of 19.29%. Houlihan Lokey’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.11 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 5.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. Houlihan Lokey’s payout ratio is currently 46.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on HLI. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $157.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. StockNews.com lowered Houlihan Lokey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $172.00 to $170.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Finally, Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Houlihan Lokey from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $171.00 to $200.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Houlihan Lokey currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $173.80.

Houlihan Lokey Company 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.