Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) Short Interest Update

Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 859,400 shares, a decrease of 5.2% from the August 15th total of 906,900 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 293,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.9 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at Houlihan Lokey

In other Houlihan Lokey news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.29, for a total value of $155,290.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Gillian Beth Zucker sold 200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.49, for a total transaction of $30,498.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,001 shares in the company, valued at $1,067,582.49. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.29, for a total value of $155,290.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 19,619 shares of company stock worth $2,818,759 over the last three months. Company insiders own 25.97% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Houlihan Lokey

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Houlihan Lokey in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Crewe Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 264.5% in the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 226 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Houlihan Lokey in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Houlihan Lokey in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. lifted its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 194.9% in the 1st quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 401 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.07% of the company’s stock.

Houlihan Lokey Price Performance

NYSE:HLI opened at $154.64 on Thursday. Houlihan Lokey has a fifty-two week low of $94.67 and a fifty-two week high of $160.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.61 billion, a PE ratio of 37.63 and a beta of 0.67. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $149.89 and its 200-day simple moving average is $137.02.

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

Houlihan Lokey Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 3rd. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 55.47%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HLI has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $132.00 to $129.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $154.00 price target (up previously from $139.00) on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $148.00 to $146.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Houlihan Lokey in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $149.00 target price on the stock. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $157.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Houlihan Lokey has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $149.60.

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.