Analysts Set Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) Price Target at $185.00

Shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the six analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $192.20.

Several brokerages recently commented on HLI. Wall Street Zen upgraded Houlihan Lokey from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $159.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday.

Insider Transactions at Houlihan Lokey

In related news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.02, for a total value of $86,510.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 8,008 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.71, for a total value of $1,431,109.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 23.68% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Houlihan Lokey

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Bogart Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 111.1% in the 1st quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 152 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Motco bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the 1st quarter worth $29,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey in the 1st quarter worth $33,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 103.5% in the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 232 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. 78.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Houlihan Lokey Price Performance

Houlihan Lokey stock opened at $181.10 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $170.71 and a 200-day moving average of $170.14. Houlihan Lokey has a 1 year low of $130.28 and a 1 year high of $192.10. The company has a market capitalization of $12.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.12 and a beta of 0.83.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.35. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 21.61% and a net margin of 16.73%. The business had revenue of $666.42 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $628.25 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.27 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Houlihan Lokey will post 5.98 EPS for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This is an increase from Houlihan Lokey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.33%. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.24%.

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.