Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) has received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the six ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have assigned a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $194.20.

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Houlihan Lokey from $172.00 to $169.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. StockNews.com downgraded Houlihan Lokey from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating and set a $192.00 price objective (up from $170.00) on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Houlihan Lokey from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $180.00 to $179.00 in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey from $200.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Houlihan Lokey

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of HLI. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its stake in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 110.9% in the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 4,955 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $783,000 after purchasing an additional 2,606 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. raised its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 2,482.4% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 9,813 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,551,000 after acquiring an additional 9,433 shares during the period. Atria Investments Inc lifted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 3.7% in the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 22,497 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,555,000 after acquiring an additional 809 shares during the last quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Houlihan Lokey in the third quarter worth about $254,000. Finally, Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 25.2% in the third quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 4,688 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $741,000 after acquiring an additional 944 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.07% of the company’s stock.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

Shares of HLI opened at $156.70 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $174.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $171.88. The company has a market capitalization of $10.99 billion, a PE ratio of 29.90 and a beta of 0.72. Houlihan Lokey has a fifty-two week low of $121.81 and a fifty-two week high of $192.10.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.13. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 16.00%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Houlihan Lokey will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Houlihan Lokey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.46%. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.51%.

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.