Prudential PLC Acquires New Shares in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. $HLI

Prudential PLC acquired a new stake in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 6,226 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,085,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in HLI. Norges Bank bought a new position in Houlihan Lokey in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $115,478,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 153.8% during the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 274,387 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,376,000 after buying an additional 166,285 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 19.7% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 956,441 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $196,376,000 after buying an additional 157,605 shares during the period. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec lifted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 411.1% during the 3rd quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec now owns 170,617 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,031,000 after buying an additional 137,237 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey during the 1st quarter valued at $18,964,000. 78.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Houlihan Lokey

In other news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 6,265 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.26, for a total value of $941,378.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 6,265 shares in the company, valued at $941,378.90. This represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.40, for a total value of $71,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel owned 500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $71,700. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 22.83% of the company’s stock.

Houlihan Lokey Price Performance

NYSE:HLI opened at $139.38 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.95. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a one year low of $134.41 and a one year high of $211.78. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $149.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $162.88.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $635.64 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $679.22 million. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 22.88% and a net margin of 16.26%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.96 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 8.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a $0.70 dividend. This is a positive change from Houlihan Lokey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.02%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings cut Houlihan Lokey from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. UBS Group set a $160.00 price target on Houlihan Lokey in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $205.00 to $193.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $177.00 to $172.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Zacks Research cut Houlihan Lokey from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $191.29.

About Houlihan Lokey

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.