Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) Plans Dividend Increase – $0.57 Per Share

Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, May 8th, Zacks reports. Investors of record on Monday, June 3rd will be paid a dividend of 0.57 per share by the financial services provider on Saturday, June 15th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.70%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 3rd. This is a positive change from Houlihan Lokey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55.

Houlihan Lokey has increased its dividend payment by an average of 19.4% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 7 years. Houlihan Lokey has a dividend payout ratio of 33.4% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Houlihan Lokey to earn $5.71 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.20 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 38.5%.

Houlihan Lokey Price Performance

Houlihan Lokey stock traded down $0.15 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $134.44. 209,527 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 339,275. Houlihan Lokey has a 1 year low of $86.20 and a 1 year high of $137.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.38 and a beta of 0.67. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $127.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $119.66.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.07. Houlihan Lokey had a return on equity of 18.06% and a net margin of 14.90%. The company had revenue of $520.46 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $508.99 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.11 earnings per share. Houlihan Lokey’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Houlihan Lokey will post 4.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on HLI shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $127.00 price target on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a report on Monday, January 29th. UBS Group raised their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $136.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th.

Insider Activity at Houlihan Lokey

In related news, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 1,000 shares of Houlihan Lokey stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.94, for a total value of $128,940.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 25.97% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.