Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Makes New $2.27 Million Investment in Houlihan Lokey, Inc. $HLI

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new position in shares of Houlihan Lokey, Inc. (NYSE:HLI) during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 15,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,269,000.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,016 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $577,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Houlihan Lokey by 37.2% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,130 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $306,000 after buying an additional 577 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position in Houlihan Lokey in the first quarter valued at approximately $16,890,000. Faithward Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Houlihan Lokey by 1.6% in the first quarter. Faithward Advisors LLC now owns 19,369 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,782,000 after buying an additional 303 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Steph & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Houlihan Lokey by 55.6% in the first quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 974 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $140,000 after buying an additional 348 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.07% of the company’s stock.

Houlihan Lokey Stock Performance

NYSE:HLI opened at $132.99 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $147.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $158.78. Houlihan Lokey, Inc. has a 52-week low of $131.30 and a 52-week high of $211.78. The company has a market cap of $9.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.95.

Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:HLI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.79 by ($0.16). Houlihan Lokey had a net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 22.88%. The company had revenue of $635.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $679.22 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.96 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Houlihan Lokey, Inc. will post 8.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Houlihan Lokey Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. This is a positive change from Houlihan Lokey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Houlihan Lokey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Houlihan Lokey

In other news, Chairman Scott L. Beiser sold 6,265 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.26, for a total transaction of $941,378.90. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 6,265 shares in the company, valued at $941,378.90. The trade was a 50.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, General Counsel Christopher M. Crain sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.40, for a total transaction of $71,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel directly owned 500 shares in the company, 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.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on HLI shares. UBS Group set a $160.00 price objective on shares of Houlihan Lokey in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Houlihan Lokey from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Houlihan Lokey from $177.00 to $172.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Zacks Research raised Houlihan Lokey from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Houlihan Lokey from $210.00 to $184.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Houlihan Lokey presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $191.29.

Houlihan Lokey 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.