Brokerages Set Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) Price Target at $197.71

Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nine brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $197.7143.

A number of brokerages have commented on HLI. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $209.00 to $211.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $218.00 to $214.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $210.00 to $184.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Houlihan Lokey from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $205.00 to $193.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 9th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Houlihan Lokey news, Director Robert A. Schriesheim sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.86, for a total value of $854,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 27,982 shares in the company, valued at $4,781,004.52. This represents a 15.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.40, for a total transaction of $71,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $71,700. The trade was a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 22.83% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Houlihan Lokey

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 6.4% during the first quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 8,606 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,236,000 after acquiring an additional 516 shares during the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA boosted its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 11.6% during the first quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA now owns 5,774 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $803,000 after acquiring an additional 599 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the first quarter worth $415,000. J2 Capital Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 46.1% during the first quarter. J2 Capital Management Inc now owns 4,567 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $656,000 after acquiring an additional 1,441 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the first quarter worth $2,269,000. Institutional investors own 78.07% of the company’s stock.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Down 1.4%

HLI opened at $158.36 on Friday. Houlihan Lokey has a twelve month low of $134.41 and a twelve month high of $211.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.33, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $152.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $171.22.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.09. Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 16.91% and a return on equity of 24.46%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.64 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey will post 7.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were given a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.87%.

Houlihan Lokey Company Profile

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.